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Home / News / Coronavirus weekly round-up: No UK Covid deaths for first time since March 2020; Portugal drops off green list
Coronavirus weekly round-up: No UK Covid deaths for first time since March 2020; Portugal drops off green list
Four investors mull the events shaping portfolios over the past week
The UK recorded its first day without any Covid related deaths since the pandemic started in March 2020, but scientists also warned the government over lifting remaining restrictions due to concerns about the still-spreading variant of the virus first identified in India. In addition, Portugal was taken off the UK’s ‘green list’ of travel destinations.
It was a sleepy week in the markets for the major averages. Stocks flirted with the old highs, only to fall back by the end of the week. Energy and a few meme stocks occupied most of the attention.
Crude oil spiked higher, nearing almost $70 a barrel, pulling energy stocks along with it. Energy traders were heartened by the latest OPEC meeting. The cartel expects demand to outstrip supply by more than a million barrels a day for the foreseeable future. As a result, the members intend to gradually increase production as the global economy gathers steam. Most analysts expect oil to breach $70 a barrel before taking a break.
Fed Is Among the Biggest Winners From Its Foray Into Credit ETFs The U.S. central bank accumulated roughly $8.6 billion worth of bond exchange-traded funds in 2020 as it worked to backstop markets amid a quickly descending pandemic.
Katie Greifeld | Jun 04, 2021
(Bloomberg) Staving off the collapse of the financial system came with an added bonus for the Federal Reserve: A tidy profit.
The U.S. central bank accumulated roughly $8.6 billion worth of bond exchange-traded funds in 2020 as it worked to backstop markets amid a quickly descending pandemic. Now, as the Fed prepares to unwind its holdings on June 7, it’s sitting on a gain of $140 million from the price appreciation alone, according to Citigroup Inc.
6/3/2021 7:09:04 AM GMT
Markets
“Looking forward, contacts anticipate facing cost increases and charging higher prices in coming months”. The Fed’s latest Beige Book delivered the expected/feared for anecdotical evidence that the current increase in prices could at least partly become structural. The preparatory document for the upcoming June 16 FOMC meeting also noted that the national economy expanded at a moderate pace from early April to late May, which was a slight acceleration compared to the previous period. The document is also filled with stories from companies willing to hire, but failing to attract personnel.
Developments prompted Philly Fed Harker (see below) to join the chorus of FOMC voices speaking out in favor of starting the QE tapering debate in the coming week (ie June FOMC meeting). While it obviously takes some time and thought to start winding down asset purchases running at a monthly $120bn pace and piling on to a $8tn balance sheet, it’s more strai