European Equities: Another Quiet Day on the Calendar Leaves COVID-19 and Earnings in Focus

The Majors

It was a particularly bearish day for the European majors on Tuesday.

Following a mixed session on Monday, the CAC40 and the EuroStoxx600 slid by 2.09% and by 1.90% respectively. The DAX30 ended the day with a 1.55% loss.

A continued rise in new COVID-19 cases, in spite of ongoing vaccination programs, tested market optimism on the day.  A pullback in the U.S markets added to the downside for the European majors.

A lack of stats from the U.S late in the session gave the markets little else to consider as governments continue to struggle with the pandemic.

The Stats

It was a quiet day on the economic calendar on Tuesday.

German wholesale inflation figures were in focus early in the European session.

In March, Germany’s producer price index rose by 0.9% month-on-month, following a 0.7% rise in February. Economists had forecast a 0.6% increase.

Compared with the same month a year earlier, producer prices of industrial products were up by 3.7%. This was the highest increase when compared with the corresponding month of the preceding year since Nov-2011.

According to Destatis,

• Prices of energy and prices of intermediate products drive the index northwards year-on-year.
• Energy prices jumped by 8.0% compared with Mar-2020, with prices of intermediate goods up 5.7%.
• Prices of durable consumer goods increased by a more modest 1.4% and capital goods by 0.9% compared with Mar-2020.
• As a result of a 20.8% slide in prices for pork, food prices fell by 2.5% that dragged prices of non-durable consumer goods down by 1.4% year-on-year.

From the U.S

It was another particularly quiet day, with no major stats to provide the majors with direction late in the day.

The Market Movers

For the DAX: It was a bearish day for the auto sector on Tuesday. Daimler and BMW slid by 2.68% and by 2.01% respectively. Continental and Volkswagen weren’t far behind, with losses of 1.77% and 1.91% respectively.

It was also a bearish day for the banks. Deutsche Bank slid by 3.94%, with Commerzbank tumbling by 4.78%.

From the CAC, it was a bearish day for the banks. BNP Paribas and Soc Gen slid by 4.69% and by 4.57% respectively, with Credit Agricole falling by 2.97%.

The French auto sector also struggled. Stellantis NV and Renault ended the day down by 4.04% and by 4.51% respectively.

Air France-KLM slumped by 6.10%, with Airbus SE sliding by 4.63%.

On the VIX Index

It was a 2^nd consecutive day in the green for the VIX on Tuesday, marking a 4^th daily gain in 10-sessions.

Following on from a 6.40% rise on Monday, the VIX increased by 8.04% to end the day at 18.68.

The Dow and the S&P500 fell by 0.75% and by 0.68% respectively, with the NASDAQ declining by 0.98%.