Pound May Rise as 4Q UK GDP Data Boosts BOE Rate Hike Bets

Good Morning,

- Wall Street flat after leftists win Greek elections

- U.S. stocks were little changed on Monday after a decisive Greek election victory by the leftist Syriza party spurred concern over fresh instability in the euro zone, even as the possibility of Greece leaving the bloc was considered remote. The Syriza party looked set to take on Greece's international lenders, with leader Alexis Tsipras pledging to end five years of austerity and renegotiate Greece's debt agreements.

- US Equity Market Close: Dow +0.03% (17,679); S&P 500 +0.26% (2,058); Nasdaq +0.29% (4,772).

- Pound May Rise as 4Q UK GDP Data Boosts BOE Rate Hike Bets. The preliminary set of fourth-quarter UK GDP figures headlines the economic calendar in European trading hours. The year-on-year economic growth rate is expected to rise to 2.8 percent, the highest since 2007.

-A Greece debt deal can be done with Syriza - it’s tricky, but possible…’ The day after Syriza’s victory in Greece, financial markets are sanguine. The euro wobbled but then recovered. The Greek stock market fell, but not sharply…Germany, Finland, et al are saying no debt will be written off, and one must assume they mean it. But, as Dutch finance minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem tacitly acknowledged on Monday, it is possible to redefine “debt sustainability” without making an actual reduction in the sum of debt to be repaid.’

-NZ dollar hits fresh three-year low ahead of RBNZ.

- S&P downgrades Russia's sovereign credit rating to "junk".

-German Business Confidence Rises as Stimulus Effects Build. German business confidence rose for a third month as falling energy costs and anticipation of more European Central Bank stimulus helped lift optimism about an economic recovery. The Ifo institute’s business climate index, based on a survey of 7,000 executives, advanced to 106.7 in January from 105.5 in December.

-SNB's Danthine: ‘SNB still prepared to intervene on FX market,’ ‘CURRENT LEVEL OF EUR/CHF is NOT JUSTIFIED’, forex market not yet stabilized.

-Japan's Finance Minister, Taro Aso: Best if base wages rises continue in Japan, watching situation in Europe after Greece's election. Also he said, “This year will be a crucial period for abenomics.’’

-CHF weakens as less need for safe haven after Greek election, while RUB collapses on S&P downgrade to junk, talk of more sanctions.

- Today: 1st estimate of UK Q4 GDP, US Durable Goods, US S&P/Case Shiller house price index, US Richmond Fed manufacturing index, US Conference consumer board, FOMC preview.

Have a nice Day !