The sale of luxury goods is known to be highly dependent on general consumer mood and economic confidence. The recent global events have sent the financial markets into turmoil and there is concern that the early cycle recovery of the luxury sector may now be vulnerable. We look at investor sentiment in Tiffany and Co. (NYSE:TIF), LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton Sa (EPA:MC), Hermes Sa (EPA:RMS) and Compagnie Financiere Richemont Sa (CFR).

The dividend season is clouding our view of stock on loan in Japan and we are conscious of the need for sensitivity in making assumptions about investor sentiment given the terrible crisis faced by the world’s third largest economy. Our piece today is focused on investor sentiment towards Uranium producers, the key element in the production of nuclear power, and we will also look at a Japanese focused ETF.

By looking at five European companies hitting short interest at annual highs we see some fairly topical investment themes. This sample shows that demand to borrow is set to be a topic of heated discussion at today’s Securities Financing Forum (check out updates throughout the day). It continues to bubble up, especially given the increase in the number of firms looking “exposed” on valuation grounds.

The last time airlines had to contend with oil priced over USD 100 was back in 2008. Despite a year of recovering demand and increasing ticket prices, airlines are reviewing their business models and hedging strategies to be able to profitably absorb their sensitivity to the price of oil. We look at investor sentiment towards; Deutsche Lufthansa Ag (ETR:LHA), Air France-KLM (EPA:AF), EasyJet (LON:EZJ), AMR Corp (NYSE:AMR) and United Continental Holdings (NASDAQ:UAL).