Weekly Market Summary

💡1. Deloitte’s UK partners will receive an average payout of about £1m after the accounting firm’s profits rebounded from a pandemic slump last year, helped by the sale of its restructuring division. The share of profits to 700 equity partners is the highest in at least a decade, according to people briefed on the annual results, which are due to be published next week. The results are the latest example of a large professional services firm increasing profits during the pandemic as companies seek advice on digitising their businesses and strengthening supply chains. Costs were also reduced across the sector by curbs on business travel and client entertaining.

💡2. Inflation will continue to rise over the next two years, according to revised projections by the OECD, which expects price increases to be significantly higher in 2021 and in 2022 than it previously forecast for most G20 countries. Laurence Boone, OECD chief economist, said managing inflation would be “a very difficult balancing act” for policymakers. As if on cue, the vice-president of the European Central Bank promised on Tuesday to be “very vigilant” for any signs that supply-side bottlenecks and higher wages were driving prices higher than expected.

💡3. Until just a few weeks ago, sales at three residential developments in the eastern Chinese city of Jinan were booming. But in September, traditionally one of the busiest months for purchases of new homes, the mood has soured. Sales at the projects are flat or declining as authorities tighten access to mortgages, and developers are now offering discounts in an attempt to shift the units — even if it leads to a small loss. The issues in Jinan, home to 9m people, are part of a nationwide chill sweeping across China’s real estate sector.

💡4. Global stocks advanced on Wednesday, as fears around indebted Chinese property developer Evergrande eased and the US Federal Reserve provided more details on its timetable for lifting interest rates. The blue-chip S&P 500 index closed 1 per cent higher, holding on to its early gains even after Fed chair Jay Powell signalled the US central bank could start withdrawing its enormous stimulus programme as early as November. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite also rose 1 per cent. The yield on the US government’s benchmark 10-year bond, which rises when prices fall, dipped 0.02 percentage points to 1.30 per cent.

                  ————————————————

One of the must-ask interview questions for banking and finance is: “Have you read any news recently?”, with the follow-up questions: “How would you link this news to the market and what investment suggestions would you give to your clients based on this news?” 

.

Showing your market sense and ability to provide feasible investment ideas would help to differentiate you from other candidates. Therefore, apart from the weekly news update / investment insights, we have also generated this Weekly Market Summary for you to have a quick understanding of the market development and tips to answer some hot discussion topics. Take a look of the summary and WhatsApp us in the group if you have questions.