Bear trend intact despite Friday rally

REVIEW: The week started with the Federal Reserve pulling out all the stops, moving to buffer the impact of Covid-19 on the global economy by slashing interest rates by 100 basis points to zero while starting a short-term corporate debt purchase programme.

However, the move would send a strong crisis signal to investors, who took the view that the central bank had all but spent its arsenal in combating what is becoming an increasingly dire economic situation.