Daily Economics Dashboard - 9 March 2021

Download an overview of key economic and financial metrics on 9 March 2021.

Equities: Globally, stocks are mostly higher. In Europe, the FTSE 250 (+0.5%), STOXX 600 (+0.4%), DAX (+0.4%) and CAC 40 (+0.1%) are all higher over the morning. In Asia, the TOPIX (+1.3%), Hang Seng (+0.8%) and S&P / ASX 200 (+0.5%) were all up on close, however the CSI 300 (-2.1%) and the KOSPI (-0.7%) closed lower. In the US, futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are up +1.0% and +0.6%, respectively.
VIX: After increasing +3% over Monday, the CBOE market volatility index has since declined -3.6% this morning to 24.6, remaining elevated compared to its long term average (LTA) of 19.9. Meanwhile, the Euro Stoxx 50 volatility index is lower this morning, down -1.5% to 20.5, remaining below its LTA of 23.9.
Bonds: The US 10-year treasury yield has compressed -6bps to 1.54%, while the German 10-year bund yield is down -4bps to -0.32% and the UK 10-year gilt yield is -3bps lower at 0.72%.
Currency: Sterling has appreciated to $1.39 and the euro is currently $1.19. Hedging benefits into the UK and the Eurozone are 0.58% and 1.64%, respectively, on a five-year basis, largely unchanged from yesterday.
Oil: Brent Crude and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) have increased +0.7% and +0.6% to $68.73 and $65.44, respectively.
Baltic Dry: The Baltic Dry increased for the fifth consecutive session on Monday, up +1.3% to 1853, its highest level in nearly two months. The index has now reached the four-month high seen in January 2021. Prices have been pushed higher by the capsize index, which increased +2.3% yesterday to a two week high.
Gold: The price of Gold is currently $1,682 per troy ounce, -13% below where it was at the start of the year.
Global GDP: The OECD has revised upwards its global GDP forecast. The OECD expect global GDP to increase +5.6% in 2021 and +4.0% in 2022, up from +4.2% and +3.7% previously forecast in November. The OECD have also revised their forecast for the US economy, expecting GDP to increase +6.5% in 2021 and +4.0% in 2022, higher than December’s forecast of +3.2% in 2021 and +3.5% in 2022.