(22 OCTOBER 2018)DAILY MARKET BRIEF 1:Italian equities rise despite Moody’s credit rating cut

On Monday morning, Italian equities surged across the board, with financials rising the most, while treasury yields fell to a 1-month low. Last Friday, Moody’s Investors Service cut the country credit rating to Baa3, one notch above junk, amid rising concerns over Italy’s eroding fiscal strength. However, the fact that the tone of the statement remained quite positive, together with constructive comments from EU’s Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Pierre Moscivici, helped to limit the sell-off. In addition, Luigi Di Maio said that his government was open to negotiations with the European Union. The 2-year BTP-Bund spread eased to 1.72%, down from 2.14% last Thursday.

In the FX market, the single currency reacted positively. EUR/USD rose 0.30% to 1.1550 before returning to 1.1530, which suggests that investors remain on their guard. Overall, the risk sentiment had improved somewhat but investors’ confidence remains fragile following two rough weeks, which have seen equity valuations melt like snow under the sun.

By Arnaud Masset