Today the markets opened for the last two business days of 2019 and the beginning of 2020. Here is what to watch out for in the next five days as see one year off and greet another.
First off, we need to mention the elephant in the room - the New Year’s holidays. Most markets will be closed right in the middle of the week to celebrate the coming of a new year, which would in turn keep market news this week to a minimum.
Bear in mind that when the markets are closed, there is usually lower liquidity. Earlier this year there was a flash crash with the Japanese yen during a yen shortage when the country was celebrating a national holiday. Currency pairs may behave slightly differently under lower liquidity market conditions.
Though this week will be fairly light on news, there are a few announcements to look forward to. Tomorrow China will publish its manufacturing report; investors are likely going to follow this with keen eyes, as China’s industrial sector has a strong influence on many trading instruments, including crude oil.
Friday will be particularly busy, as we expect both the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s most recent policy meeting, and the US ISM manufacturing index, which is a good indicator of the current strength of the country’s economy.
