Here are the top five things you need to know in financial markets on Tuesday, April 19:
1. Oil erases losses caused by Doha
Oil prices rose on Tuesday as a strike by oil workers in Kuwait cut the country’s output levels in half.
The gains completely erased losses provoked over the weekend by a failure by major oil producers to reach an agreement in Doha on a production freeze aimed at propping up prices.
U.S. crude oil futures rose 1.41% to $41.77 at 9:52AM GMT, or 5:54AM ET, while Brent oil traded up 1.79% to $43.68.
2. Central bank chiefs in focus on Tuesday
Investors will be paying attention to central bank chiefs that were scheduled to speak throughout the day as they look for signs of the future path of monetary policy.
Reserve Bank of Australia governor Glenn Stevens will speak at 13:30GMT, or 9:30AM ET, at the Credit Suisse (SIX:CSGN) Global Macro Conference.
Bank of England (BoE) governor Mark Carney will testify before the British Economic Affairs Committee on the U.K.’s general economic outlook at 14:30GMT, or 10:00AM ET.
Bank of Canada (BoC) governor Stephen Poloz will appear before the Canadian House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance at 15:00GMT, or 11:00AM ET.
3. Pound shows strength as Remain campaign gains in latest Brexit poll
GBP/USD moved higher after a recent poll showed that those planning to vote to remain in the European Union (EU) in the June 23 referendum was widening its lead over those preferring a Brexit, as the option to leave the group is known.
According to the Orb/Telegraph poll, 52% will vote to remain, 43% to leave and only 5% is undecided.
4. German investors’ spirits buoyed by Chinese data; Brexit weighs on sentiment
German institutional investors and analysts showed a more optimistic outlook according to the ZEW economic sentiment index for April that was released on Tuesday.
The ZEW Institute noted that investors in the motor of the euro zone’s economy showed signs of relief from better-than-expected Chinese data, though it noted that concern about the slowdown in China was still a major concern for German exports.
ZEW also pointed out that “concern about Great Britain’s possible exit from the EU seems to be having a negative impact”.
5. Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS), Johnson&Johnson, Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) and Yahoo (NASDAQ:YHOO) all set to report earnings
With earnings season in full-swing, investors await the publication of reports from both Goldman Sachs and Johnson&Johnson before the U.S. open.
They will also digest the latest figures from Intel and Yahoo after the close.
On the economic calendar stateside, housing starts and building permits for March will be released at 12:30GMT, or 8:30AM ET.