Advertisement
Advertisement

European Equities: A Quiet Calendar Leaves U.S Jobless Claims in Focus

By:
Bob Mason
Published: Sep 1, 2021, 23:37 UTC

After a busy day on the economic calendar, there are no stats from the Eurozone to consider today. It remains to be seen, whether optimism can continue to mute weak data...

Depositphotos_212162666_s-2019

In this article:

Economic Calendar

Friday, 3rd September

Spanish Services PMI (Aug)

Italian Services PMI (Aug)

French Services PMI (Aug) Final

German Services PMI (Aug) Final

Eurozone Markit Composite PMI (Aug) Final

Eurozone Services PMI (Aug) Final

Eurozone Retail Sales (MoM) (Jul)

The Majors

It was a mixed day for the European majors on Wednesday.

The DAX30 slipped by 0.07%, while the CAC40 and the EuroStoxx600 ended the day up by 1.18% and by 0.48% respectively.

Economic data from Germany weighed on the DAX30, while other member state and Eurozone manufacturing PMIs delivered support.

Disappointing manufacturing PMI numbers from China failed to sink the majors in spite of the a contraction in August. The all-important Caixin Manufacturing PMI fell from 50.3 to 49.2…

Stats from the U.S were market friendly, however, with weak ADP employment figures suggesting more time needed on the policy front.

The Stats

It was a busy day on the European economic calendar. German retail sales and manufacturing sector PMIs for Italy and Spain were in focus. Finalized PMIs from France, Germany, and the Eurozone also drew interest, however.

German Retail Sales

In July, retail sales slid by 5.1%, month-on-month, versus a forecasted 0.9% decline. Retail sales had rise by 4.5% in June.

Manufacturing Sector Activity

In August, Spain’s manufacturing PMI increased from 59.0 to 59.5 versus a forecasted decline to 58.9.

Italy’s manufacturing PMI rose from 60.3 to 60.9. Economists had forecasted a fall to 60.1.

From France, the manufacturing PMI fell from 58.0 to 57.5, which was up from a prelim 57.3.

German’s manufacturing PMI declined from 65.9 to 62.6, which was also down from a prelim 62.7.

As a result, the Eurozone’s manufacturing PMI fell from 62.8 to 61.4, which was down from a prelim 61.5.

From the U.S

Key stats included ISM Manufacturing PMI and ADP nonfarm employment change figures.

In August, the ISM Manufacturing PMI rose from 59.5 to 59.9. Economists had forecast a decline to 58.6. More significant for the markets was the employment sub-index, which fell from 52.9 to 49.0.

ADP numbers disappointed, however. For August, the ADP reported an 374k increase in nonfarm payrolls versus a forecasted 613k increase. In July, nonfarm employment had risen by 326k.

The Market Movers

For the DAX: It was a mixed day for the auto sector on Wednesday. Volkswagen bucked the trend, rising by 0.19%.  BMW and Continental ended the day down by 1.09% and by 1.81% respectively, with and Daimler  falling by 0.11%.

It was a bullish day for the banks, however. Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank rose by 0.57% and by 1.07% respectively.

From the CAC, it was a bullish day for the banks. BNP Paribas and Soc Gen saw gains of 1.99% and 1.35% respectively, with Credit Agricole rising by 0.97%.

It was a bearish day for the French auto sector, however. Stellantis NV and Renault fell by 0.54% and 1.59% respectively.

Air France-KLM and Airbus SE ended the day up by 1.09% and by 1.99% respectively.

On the VIX Index

It was a back into the red for the VIX on Wednesday.

Reversing a 1.79% gain from Tuesday, the VIX fell by 2.25% to end the day at 16.11.

The Dow fell by 0.14%, while the NASDAQ and the S&P500 ended the day up by 0.33% and by 0.03% respectively.

VIX 020921 Daily Chart

The Day Ahead

It’s a particularly quiet day ahead on the Eurozone’s economic calendar.

There are no material stats due out of the Eurozone to provide the majors with direction. The lack of stats will leave the focus on the U.S economic calendar.

As the markets look ahead to NFP numbers on Friday, today’s initial jobless claims will draw plenty of interest. We’ve yet to see initial jobless claims fall to sub-300k levels. A marked decline would place greater expectation on Friday’s NFP numbers. ADP numbers from Wednesday have added to the confusion, however…

The Futures

In the futures markets, at the time of writing, the Dow Mini was down by 5 points.

For a look at all of today’s economic events, check out our economic calendar.

About the Author

Bob Masonauthor

With over 20 years of experience in the finance industry, Bob has been managing regional teams across Europe and Asia and focusing on analytics across both corporate and financial institutions. Currently he is covering developments relating to the financial markets, including currencies, commodities, alternative asset classes, and global equities.

Did you find this article useful?

Advertisement