The renowned Indian conglomerate Reliance announced that it shall buy a stake in Manhattan-based five-star hotel, Mandarin Oriental New York, through purchasing its parent company. The deal is said to be worth around $98.15 million, with Reliance’s industrial investments subsidiary to acquire parent company Cayman; an indirect owner which has a 73.37% stake in the hotel.

MACROECONOMIC DATA ANALYSIS

The central bank of Venezuela stated that the South American nation’s annual inflation rate hit a staggering 686.4% in 2021, which presents a deceleration of consumer price growth when compared to last year’s figures, driven by governmental measures focused on tightening credit and decreased spending.

Hospitalization rates arising from the spread of COVID-19 has been on the rise, especially in the United States. According to Reuters, hospitalizations in the U.S. will likely set new highs on Friday, fueled by the spread of the Omicron variant, placing heavy strains on hospitals.

CURRENCIES

The U.S. dollar suffered its largest decline in six weeks due to the nation’s jobs report of December missing expectations and proven to be underwhelming. However, the rise in nonfarm payrolls by 199,000 last month, which is miles away from the estimate of 400,000, the figure is still seen as significant enough to maintain the Federal Reserve’s tightening outlook. The dollar index dropped 0.61% to 95.735.

GOLD

Gold futures bounce back from three-week lows amid an underwhelming U.S. jobs report in December, which has plunged the dollar greenback to six-week lows. Amid a weaker U.S. dollar and less risk appetite, which typically push the bullion upwards, the safe haven jumped 0.27% to value at $1,796 per ounce.

OIL

Crude oil prices sink lower amid supply issues looming in Kazakhstan and declining production in Libya caused by pipeline maintenance work. However, oil futures remain 5% higher than the week before. Brent futures edged 0.26% lower on Friday to $81.78 a barrel, while WTI futures declined 0.72% to price at $78.89 per barrel.

INDICES

USA: S&P500 -0.41%, Dow Jones Industrial Average -0.01%, Nasdaq Composite -1.10%

Europe: FTSE 100 +0.47%, DAX -0.65%, CAC 40 -0.42%

Asia: Nikkei 225 -0.03%, Hang Seng +1.82%, CSI 300 +0.09%, Nifty 50 +0.38%