The board of Telecom Italia (TIM) met on Sunday to discuss a potential takeover from American equity firm KKR, which already holds a stake in the Italian phone group. Telecom Italia’s CEO, Luigi Gubitosi last year paved the way for a 1.8 billion euro ($2 billion) deal with KKR, handing the firm a 37.5% stake in FiberCorp, which is the organization managing TIM’s network which connects street cabinets to the homes of people.

MACROECONOMIC DATA ANALYSIS

The Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, noted that Japan is considering releasing oil from its crude reserves for the first time ever, in efforts towards offsetting the surging prices of oil. The move signals that the Asian nation is ready to counter the hiking oil prices, following an official request from the United States.

Next week, the United States and Taiwan will initiate a second session of an economic dialogue, which initially began last year, in order to solidify Taiwan’s state and strength in Asia as it faces pressure from China. Chinese leader Xi Jinping stated in a virtual meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden that supporters in USA of Taiwanese independence are “playing with fire”.

CURRENCIES

The U.S. dollar rises as investors & traders remained confident of the dollar greenback with Austria announcing that it will be the first country in Western Europe to re-impose a full lockdown, to curb the surging COVID-19 infections, with Germany stating that they shall follow suit. The dollar index jumped 0.56% to 96.075.

GOLD

Gold futures stumble, recording its first weekly loss in three weeks, with previous gains slashed as investors await the Federal Reserve’s outlook on interest rate hikes. However, the bullion remains firm above the $1,800 mark, edging 0.73% lower on Friday to value at $1,846 per ounce.

OIL

Crude oil prices collapse, miles away from the $80 mark, as the coronavirus continues to loom on major economies worldwide, despite demand for energy soaring. Brent futures crashed a whopping 3.41% to price at $78.47 a barrel, while WTI futures plummet by 3.49% to value at $75.67 a barrel.

INDICES

USA: S&P500 -0.14%, Dow Jones Industrial Average -0.75%, Nasdaq Composite +0.55%

Europe: FTSE 100 -0.45%, DAX -0.38%, CAC 40 -0.42%

Asia: Nikkei 225 +0.50%, Hang Seng -1.07%, CSI 300 +1.08%, Nifty 50 -0.75%