An agreement has been reached with Iran and the West that will see the rogue state gain more that $7 billion in relief from economic sanctions that have crippled the nation's economy. Economic sanctions have been estimated to have cost Iran more than $120 billion since 2010. Although Israel and many American political figures still believe that sanctions should be tightened rather than loosened, the accord will see the release of $4.2 billion in frozen oil assets and provide an additional $1.5 billion in revenue for Iran. However, restrictions on the Iranian finance system mean that it will remain impossible for Iranian banks and the government to access the global financial markets.
Meanwhile in Thailand, the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is facing wide-spread public protests with more than 100,000 people joining rallies across the country seeking the government's ouster. Protesters have been incensed by proposed legislation that will benefit the Prime Minister's brother, exiled billionaire and former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The proposed bill would give amnesty for almost all political offenses dating back to a 2006 coup. The Thai Baht has weakened more than 2 percent in the past month as a result of the instability. Further protests are expected in the nation's capital.
U.S. equity markets rallied for the seventh consecutive week. Gains were led by pharmaceutical companies that benefited from favourable decisions by European regulators. Investors were optimistic as job openings in the U.S. rose to a five year high in September and hiring rose to the highest levels since 2008. However, markets remain nervous over the possibility of imminent tapering of stimulus by the Federal Reserve. The S&P 500 closed the week above 1,800 at 1,804.76 after gaining 0.5% on Friday. Earlier in Europe, bourses were mostly higher with the EURO STOXX 50 gaining 0.38%.
Commodity prices have had a mixed week with the major indexes mostly unmoved for the last session of the week. The Brent-WTI spread has widened to above $14.50 and the largest margin in 8 months as WTI continues to decline over rising inventories in the U.S. Crude may suffer falls as investors consider the newly signed accord over the Iranian nuclear programme. Precious metals had a bad week as talk of Fed tapering hammered prices. Gold is currently trading at $1,244 while silver has fallen below $20.00. Copper gained 0.6%. Agricultural commodities were mixed.
