Extraordinary Greek referendum result leads to deathly dull day on markets

It was another one of those interminable Greek in-between days this Monday, with the initial excitement over the referendum result and Varoufakis’ resignation dissipating as the day continued.

The most eager man this afternoon seemed to be German vice chancellor, economic minister and Greece-biting pitbull Sigmar Gabriel. After being so vocal in his criticisms of Alexis Tsipras in the run-up to the referendum, Gabriel was slightly less aggressive, if no more positive, with his comments this Monday, claiming that Greece has rejected the rules of the currency union by voting ‘no’. He went on to state Tsipras’ proposal on Tuesday needs to go beyond those seen before as the fear remains that any leniency towards Greece will mean Portugal, Spain and Ireland will all come-a-knocking. The IMF, on the other hand, was slightly more enigmatic, stating it is ‘ready to assist Greece if requested to do so’ in an incredibly reluctant sounding statement.

With the Greek government in a hastily assembled meeting for most of the day, one that led to Tsipras receiving the backing of the 3 major opposition parties, news was light on the ground from the indebted country. Reports suggest that the Greek banks will remained closed for a few more days as the country awaits the ECB/ELA decision, whilst Tskalotos still sits atop of the most-likely list in regards the vacant Greek finance minister position (something that needs to be sorted before tomorrow’s Eurogroup meeting). Regardless, none of this was enough to drag the markets further into the red, nor was it cause for a rally out of its current declines; all-in-all, a dull day for a rather extraordinary situation.

Like the Eurozone, the FTSE failed to escape the relatively mild losses it settled into just after the bell. For this, in a way, the UK index should be applauded; it resisted the temptation to best last week’s 5 month lows despite a rather dire situation in its banking, mining and oil stocks.

A quiet afternoon for US data, with a weaker than expected but better than last month’s ISM non-manufacturing PMI, left the focus firmly on the Eurozone. This meant the Dow Jones and co. slipped to mild declines, but with the chance for some growth when the European markets close for the day. Interestingly, the Iran nuclear deal deadline has slipped under the radar due to the Greek focus. However, some attention should return with the deadline approaching, as it becomes the latest area of volatility in the global game of whac-a-mole that is the current economic climate.