Italian politicians have still yet to agree on a new President after a fourth round of voting. As mentioned in our previous blog, we expected the votes to go through several rigorous voting stages as Italian politicians remain undecided on the next President. Favourite, former ECB President Marion Draghi has seen support throughout the voting rounds dwindle as support grows to reappoint incumbent Sergio Mattarella.
Traders are expecting 5 interest rate hikes from the US Federal Reserve this year and 4 from the Bank of England, as borrowing costs are set to increase. Many traders also believe that the Federal Reserve will front-load hikes with a rare 50 basis-point move in March. As a result, the USD has strengthened against most of its peers.
Various meetings are expected with the Ukrainian President to go over a pending Russian invasion as well as the economy. US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Zelenskiy talked about new ways to bolster the Ukrainian economy, as both heads of states are also set to meet Germany to discuss the situation with Russia.
| Share Index | Prev. Close | Open |
| FTSE100 | 7554.31 | 7554.31 |
| DAX | 15582.45 | 15229.89 |
| CAC40 | 7023.8 | 7043.43 |