It will not be long now until the US stock markets reopen, at 1.30pm GMT and ahead of that opening, the noted gains in US yields are continuing to weigh on the US equity futures. That in turn is having an impact on the European markets. Earlier the DAX reached a new record high, when it rose to 18,039. However, it is right now tracking back below 18k and below 17,975 as I write. That is also perhaps a bi-product of what is a firmer dollar this afternoon. That said, we are not talking about any ground breaking gains for the dollar at this stage and overall FX volatility remains very subdued. The DAX is currently trading at 17,972