Covid-19 Daily Dashboard – 3 July 2020

An overview of key economic and financial metrics.
Written By:
William Matthews, Knight Frank
2 minutes to read
Categories: Covid-19

Download an overview of key economic and financial metrics relating to Covid-19 on 3 July 2020.

Equities: In Europe, the STOXX 600 is down -0.6%, while the FTSE 250 and the DAX have seen decreases of -0.2% and -0.4%. In Asia, the CSI 300 closed at the benchmark’s highest level since June 2015 after increasing +1.9%. This comes as the Chinese Caixin/Markit services PMI increased from 55 in May to 58.4 in June, a 10-year high. A figure above 50 is considered expansionary. In the US, futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average are -0.2% and -0.3%.


VIX: The CBOE market volatility index and the Euro Stoxx 50 volatility price index remain below 30, sitting at 29.2 and 27.2 respectively. Both indices remain above their long term averages however, indicating further expectations of near-term volatility.


Bonds: The UK 10-year gilt yield, US 10-year treasury yield and German 10-year bund yield are currently 0.18%, 0.67% and -0.44%.


Currency: Both sterling and the euro have slightly depreciated this morning to $1.24 and $1.12, respectively. Hedging benefits for US dollar denominated investors into the UK and the eurozone are currently 0.27% and 1.10% per annum on a five-year basis.


Baltic Dry: The Baltic Dry has increased for 24 consecutive sessions, currently up +1.1% to 1,823. The index was last this high on 22nd October and has recovered by 1,430 points since mid-May. This indicates improving demand for raw materials and subsequently manufacturing, as well as some adjustment to the supply side.


Oil: Brent Crude and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) both remain above $40, currently at $42.72 and $40.19 per barrel, respectively.


US Unemployment: Unemployment applications increased by 1.43 million in the week to June 27th, above expectations of 1.36 million, taking the increase in US jobless claims since 21st March 2020 to 48.7 million. The US unemployment rate has declined from 13.3% in May to 11.1% in June. Pay roll has also increased over the month, with an additional 4.8 million jobs being reported.