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Monday, March 16, 2015

10 things you need to know in markets today

Good morning! Here are 10 things in markets you need to know today. Goldman Sachs thinks the euro will drop to just $0.80. In six months, Goldman Sachs thinks the euro will reach parity with the US dollar, and drop further to $0.80 in 2017. GS previously said the currency would be at $1.10 at the end of the year and $0.90 by the end of 2017. France's National Front look likely to win upcoming local elections. A survey for Le Figaro daily sees the National Front scoring 30% of the votes. It puts the mainstream conservative UMP - led by ex-President Nicolas Sarkozy - and its centre-right UDI ally just behind with 29%. Francois Hollande's Socialists are forecast to win only 19% of the vote.  China's premier says even the country's lower growth target won't be easy to reach. It won't be easy for China to grow its economy by around 7% this year as targeted by the government, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said on Sunday, but authorities will do what they can to ensure growth stays within a reasonable range. Draghi is coming. At 6:45 p.m. GMT (2:45 p.m. ET), European Central Bank president Mario Draghi is scheduled to speak — markets will be following his every word closely, and any changes in his comments may have an impact on the plunging euro, on a very light day for economic data. Greece's finance minister says the country's liquidity problems are small. Greece's liquidity problems are "insignificant", the country's finance minister said on German television on Sunday, pledging that the Greek government would take all steps necessary to repay its debts. Yanis Varoufakis told a panel discussion on German broadcaster ARD that liquidity problems were "insignificant" and "small" when answering a question about repayment of debt. The Federal Reserve may make a major decision this week. After successive months of strong jobs data, expectations have been growing that the Fed will point towards a June rate rise by dropping a pledge to be "patient". Any sign that the US central bank will or won't drop this language before Wednesday's meeting will have a market impact. Asian markets are mixed. Japan's Nikkei closed down 0.04% on Monday, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng is currently up 0.36% just ahead of the close, and the Shanghai Composite Index is 2.01% higher. Russia is heading into its 11th day with no sign of Vladimir Putin. Russian President Vladimir Putin has not been seen in public since March 5, and the world is waiting to see if the 62-year-old casually returns or if his absence signals something more serious.  Egypt just announced $36.2 billion (£24.51 billion) in investment deals. Egyptian Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab announced Sunday that his country agreed $36.2 billion (34.5 billion euros) in investment deals, at the close of a three-day conference to kick start the economy. The IMF says India is the bright spot in the global economy. International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde hailed India as the bright spot of the global economy on Monday ahead of talks in New Delhi with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Watch 2 armed gangs fight on a busy road in China


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