In a much anticipated speech, Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto warned that "Mexico is obliged to take steps to defend itself given the new vision in U.S.," reaffirming Mexico "as a nation open to the world on trade." The peso is leaking lower as he speaks, erasing post-inauguration gains.
Further headlines include:
As we previewed and was widely expected, President Trump has just signed 3 executive orders: one officially withdrawing the US from the Trans Pacific Partnership, a second one instituting a federal hiring freeze except for the military, and a 3rd executive order limiting abortion funding overseas.
Pres Trump signs 3 Exec Orders including federal hiring freeze "except for the military" and withdrawing US from Trans-Pacific Partnership. pic.twitter.com/XYxMFi8QDj
In an overnight note by Goldman's Ian Wright titled "Calm before the storm", which looks at pricing of risk during the current low-vol episode, the GS strategist writes that in the run up to the inauguration last Friday of the 45th President of the US, investors have remained keen to discuss all things at the intersection of President Trump and markets. And yet, despite the uncertainty, volatility has been very low, which is why Goldman tries to estimate which assets appear the most fragile in the event that volatility picks up.
Authored by Robert Shiller, originally posted op-ed at The Guardian,
Speculative markets have always been vulnerable to illusion. But seeing the folly in markets provides no clear advantage in forecasting outcomes, because changes in the force of the illusion are difficult to predict.
In the US, two illusions have been important recently in financial markets.