Notes from the Trading Desk – Europe

Last week saw quiet summer trading volumes for many markets and with corporate earnings season ending, there was less news flow, too. In that context, the path of least resistance appeared to be upwards, with European and US stock market indices grinding up to new all-time highs. On the week, the MSCI World Index traded up 0.9%, the STOXX Europe 600 Index up 1.2%, S&P 500 Index up 0.7%, while the MSCI Asia Pacific Index was unchanged.