LONDON, March 25 - Investors kicked off a shortened week in subdued mood on Monday with stock benchmarks steady near last week's lifetime highs as looming U.S. inflation data provides the next milestone in the summer rate cut narrative.
The MSCI All Country stock index , opens new tab was down 0.1%, though still only about 5 points below its all-time high of last Thursday. "The market is just taking in what it's seen in the last week or two, but unless there are any major surprises in either inflation or growth, it's hard to see where the market cracks come through," Da Silva said, adding that he was watching oil prices closely, given the impact any big rise could have on reviving inflationary pressures.The main data event of the week will be the U.S. core personal consumption expenditure price index on Friday, which is seen rising 0.
Europe has its own inflation tests with consumer price data out from France, Italy, Belgium and Spain, ahead of the overall EU CPI report on April 3.