Morgans AM: Thursday 16 August 2018

Morgans Financial Limited

US equity markets recorded sharp losses albeit closed well off their session lows as the Turkish currency crisis and broader trade tensions weighed on investor confidence, with strong retail sales data doing little to mollify investors' nerves - Dow down -138-points or -0.54% The broader S&P500 -0.76%, NASDAQ -1.23%, with technology stocks roiled by disappointing second quarter results from Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd (with the company's US-listed shares falling -6.7%). Both the Dow and Nasdaq fell below their 50-day moving averages. US markets pared some of its early losses after Qatar reportedly pledged to invest US$15B in Turkey following a meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erodgan and Qatar’s Sheikh Temim bin Hamed Al Sani. Turkey raised tariffs on a number of American products, in the latest escalation in tensions between the two countries. President Trump raised duties on Turkish aluminum and steel last week; the latest tariffs from Turkey are in response to those “conscious attacks,” according to a translation of a tweet posted by Fuat Oktay, the country’s vice president.