RICS residential market survey provides some reassurance

The 2021 RICS UK Residential Survey for September showed a slight recovery in buyer demand after the drop seen following the phasing out of the Stamp Duty holiday. Today's figures appear to indicate the potential for sales to stabilise moving forward as house prices growth decelerated somewhat while remaining firm throughout the UK. On the other hand, the September new instructions net balance registered -35% (vs -36% previously) and has remained in negative territory for the last six months. While some of these signs may be encouraging, shortages in supplies and general economic uncertainty along with rising inflation continue to be key issues to overcome. 

Wall Street earning season starts positively

After yesterday's upbeat earning reports from JP Morgan and Blackrock, investors await another round of major financial institutions which will publish their results. Today we can expect reports from a variety of banks including Wells Fargo, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup and Bank of America. These results could set the stage for what to expect in the coming weeks of earnings season and could give an indication of how financial institutions performed recently as rising costs and uncertainty in markets worried investors. Meanwhile, the FED has maintained its position which could lead us to see a change in monetary policy sooner rather than later with the introduction of tapering as signs of rising inflation cannot be ignored and will have to be addressed effectively. Nevertheless, Wall Street earnings season could continue to have a noticeable impact on markets as investors await further clarification from the US central bank.