Market Update

This week saw global stock markets taking a dip, with September concluding on a downward trend. To illustrate, the US's S&P 500 index experienced a decrease of 4.76% for the month, marking its largest monthly decline since the significant drop in March 2020 due to COVID-19 concerns and its first such decline since January 2021. On a brighter note, the UK's FTSE-100 index weathered the storm better, closing September with only a 0.47% reduction.
Factors fueling this downturn included anxiety over inflation, which could hint at future elevated interest rates, persistent supply chain disruptions, a worldwide energy squeeze (evidenced not just by the notable downfall of several UK energy providers but also by factory shutdowns in China), and political disputes in the US (although Congress has approved a temporary funding solution, a decision regarding the elevation of the nation's debt limit remains pending).
In other news, China is observing a break until Friday (8 October 2021) due to its Chinese National Day and the Golden Week celebrations.
Turning our attention to oil, Brent crude's price per barrel momentarily surpassed the $80 mark this week. However, with an upcoming OPEC meeting, there's a significant likelihood that the consortium might raise their production quotas in response to rejuvenating demand.
On the data front, our eyes will be set on the upcoming US employment statistics to be unveiled on Friday, encompassing metrics like non-farm payrolls, unemployment and participation rates, and average wage figures. Other vital data releases include Chinese PMI, Eurozone's PPI and retail sales, and US manufacturing orders.