Close June 13

​In European Equity Markets stocks rebounded Thursday as Germany’s 5G auction drove the telecoms index higher, while a tanker incident caused oil prices to jump. The pan-European Stoxx 600 ended up 0.1%. British plumbing company Ferguson topped the Stoxx 600 in afternoon deals, jumping 6.1% after activist fund Trian Fund Management announced it had built a 6% stake. At the other end of Europe’s blue chip index, British copper producer Aurubis was down 7.5% after its CEO was dismissed early amid rising project costs.



In Currency Markets the pound fell on Thursday as concern grew about a leadership contest in Britain that may lead to a disorderly departure from the European Union. Boris Johnson, the front-runner in the contest to replace Prime Minister Theresa May, has said he wants to Britain to quit the EU at the end of October even if that means leaving without a deal. The pound was down 0.2% at $1.2662, close to a one-week low of $1.2653 hit on Monday. It was down 0.2% against the euro at 89.2 pence.



In Commodities Markets oil prices jumped more than 4% on Thursday after a suspected attack on two tankers in the Gulf of Oman near Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil consumption passes. The Marshall Islands-flagged Front Altair carrying naphtha and the Panama-flagged Kokuka Courageous carrying methanol have been evacuated and the crews are safe. Brent crude futures were up $2.19, or 3.65%, at $62.16 a barrel, having risen as much as 4.45% to $62.64. U.S. WTI crude futures were up $1.79, or 3.5%, at $52.93 a barrel.



In US Equity Markets gains in energy shares helped main indexes snap two days of weakness and trade higher on Thursday, with hopes of an interest rate cut adding to the upbeat sentiment. The S&P energy index jumped 1.21%, the most among the 11 major sectors. Shares of oil majors Exxon Mobil Corp and Chevron Corp rose 1% each. The S&P 500 was up 0.45%, at 2,892.90 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.66%, at 7,844.13. Twitter Inc shares fell 3.26%, after brokerage Moffett Nathanson said it expects the social media company’s costs to rise and revenue growth to slow.



In Bond Markets U.S. Treasury yields edged lower on Thursday after import prices fell by the most in five months in May, the latest indication of muted inflation pressures, which could strengthen the case for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates this year. The spread between the two- and 10-year yields , the most common measure of the yield curve, rose to 24 basis points as the fall in short-dated yields pushed the curve steeper. Still, Thursday’s moves were modest as traders held off from taking big positions before Friday’s retail sales report.