Sterling set for best week since mid-October despite minor slip

The pound is set to for its best week since the middle of October, rising almost 1 percent against the euro, after three days of gains that reached a two and a haf year high against the European currency despite a slight dip on Friday.

The bounce is linked to the latest polls predicting a win for the Conservative party in the 2019 UK general election and the Halifax bank released a report showing house prices rising at their fastest rate since the beginning of the year.

However, amidst signs of a waning UK job market, Nordea analyst Morten Lund said: "From a risk-reward perspective most people are too optimistic but if you look at option markets you can see some people positioning for sterling weakness."

European investors call on EU to fast-track climate laws 

European investors in charge of some six trillion euros have called on EU governments to fast-track legislation that would incorporate the body's 2050 climate neutrality goal into law.

Some 44 firms, such as Handelsbanken, Allianz, Aberdeen Investment and Aegon NV, signed a letter stating that legislating the climate targets would boost investor confidence to back long-term environmental schemes. In the document, the group stated that if climate change went unchecked, a "catastrophic" possibility, the global economy could lose $23 trillion.

Aston Martin shares rev up after reports of F1 billionaire bid 

Canadian entrepreneur and the owner of Formula One team Racing Point, Lawrence Stroll, is putting together a bid to buy a large share in Aston Martin, according to Autocar magazine, pushing the car-maker's share value up by almost 15 percent.

Aston Martin's share price has slipped since it arrived on the market in October 2018 with sales far below forecasts. 

Germany's industrial production woes deepen

Germany's manufacturing slump has caused concern of a looming crisis in Europe's largest economy, with fears of contraction and stagnation for this year's final quarter. It comes after capacity utilization, the measure of how efficient an economy is, dropped to its lowest level since 2013. On top of that Industrial production has been falling at its quickest rate since 2009 according to analysts. 

Oliver Rakau of Oxford Economics described the plunge in factory production on Twitter as "disastrous", and with Germany only just avoiding recession with mild growth in Q3, hope of recovery in the last quarter of the year is vanishing.

Trade tensions & OPEC talks

OPEC+ talks in Vienna ran late into the night. Members agreed to further cut production by an additional 500,000 barrels a day to support prices, but analysts say it is more of a housekeeping move that won't really affect supply. 

"In order for oil prices to rally, we will need to see the Russians, Iraqis and Nigerians, the production cut cheaters, to follow through with their share of promised cuts," said Edward Moya at OANDA.

Meanwhile, whether Trump will hike or waiver tariffs on $146 billion Chinese goods, including electrics and children's toys, on 15th December is still talk of the trading floor. The markets do not seem to expect this next round of tariffs to happen, but stocks continue to fluctuate over trade deal headlines and cynicism over whether a "Phase One" deal will be signed off this side of Christmas. Then again, at least both sides are talking. 

On currency markets, Investors seem to be betting on a Conservative majority in the UK general election next Thursday, but as we know, anything could happen between now and then, so expect the trading tone to be one of cautious optimism.

"The U.S dollar has also come under pressure this week as concern over weaker data and trade deal delay weighs on sentiment," said Michael Hewson of CMC Markets.