Covid-19 Daily Dashboard – 18 June 2020
An overview of key economic and financial metrics.
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Download an overview of key economic and financial metrics relating to Covid-19 on 18 June 2020.
Equities: In Europe, equity markets have opened slightly lower this morning, with the STOXX 600 down -0.1%, albeit, the FTSE 250 is up +0.1%. In the US, the S&P 500 closed -0.4% lower, while futures point to further declines of -0.3% on open. In Asia, stocks closed lower, with the S&P/ASX 200 declining by -0.9%, the Kospi down by -0.4% and the Hang Seng by -0.1%.
VIX: The CBOE market volatility index is currently 34.0, versus a long term average of 20.0. The Euro Stoxx 50 volatility price index, which reflects investor sentiment in Europe, is currently 35.2. This compares to the long term average of 23.9 and is down from a peak of 85.6 on 16th March. Both indices remain elevated, 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%, 0.73% and -0.43%.
Currency: Sterling has slightly depreciated to $1.25, while the euro remains at $1.13. Hedging benefits for US dollar investors into the UK and the eurozone are currently 0.31% and 1.11% per annum on a five-year basis, respectively.
Baltic Dry: The Baltic Dry Index increased for its 13th consecutive session yesterday, up +18.2% to 1,246. This is 156 points above where it was at the start of January 2020. This indicates improving demand for raw materials and subsequently manufacturing, as COVID-19 containment measures continue to ease.
US Election: Predictit, the online political futures market, currently indicates a 44% likelihood of President Trump being re-elected in November. The current probability of Joe Biden winning the election is 58%. The last time Trump had a probability higher than 50% was the 22nd April 2020, while the peak likelihood of his re-election was 56% on 12th February 2020.