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European Equities: German and Eurozone Economic Sentiment in Focus

By:
Bob Mason
Published: Apr 12, 2021, 23:01 UTC

Economic sentiment figures from Germany and the Eurozone to provide direction later today, ahead of stats from the U.S.

European Equities: German and Eurozone Economic Sentiment in Focus

In this article:

Economic Calendar:

Tuesday, 13th April

German ZEW Economic Sentiment (Apr)

German ZEW Current Conditions (Apr)

Eurozone ZEW Economic Sentiment (Apr)

Wednesday, 14th April

Spanish CPI (YoY) (Mar) Final

Spanish HICP (YoY) (Mar) Final

Eurozone Industrial Production (MoM) (Feb)

Thursday, 15th April

German CPI (MoM) (Mar) Final

French CPI (MoM) (Mar) Final

French HICP (MoM) (Mar) Final

Italian CPI (MoM) (Mar) Final

Friday, 16th April

Eurozone Core CPI (YoY) (Mar) Final

Eurozone CPI (YoY) (Mar) Final

Eurozone CPI (MoM) (Mar) Final

Eurozone Trade Balance (Feb)

The Majors

It was a relatively bearish start to the week on Monday. The EuroStoxx600 fell by 0.46%, with the CAC40 and DAX30 both ending the day down by 0.13%.

Economic data was in the lighter side throughout the day, leaving the majors with little direction.

The lack of stats left concerns over the impact of low vaccination rates across the EU on the economic outlook to peg the majors back.

The Stats

It was a quieter day on the economic calendar on Monday.

In February, retail sales increased by 3.0% month-on-month, partially reversing a 5.2% slide from January. Economists had forecast a 1.5% rise.

According to Eurostat,

  • The volume of retail trade increased by 6.8% for non-food products and by 3.7% for automotive fuels.
  • Sales of food, drinks, and tobacco fell by 1.1%, however.
  • By member state, Austria (+28.2%), Slovenia (+16.4%), and Italy (+8.4%) reported the largest increase in sales.
  • Malta (-1.5%) and France (-1.2%) registered the largest decreases in the month of February.
  • In February 2021 compared with February 2020, the volume of retail trade decreased by 2.9%.

From the U.S

It was a particularly quiet start to the week, with no material stats from the U.S to provide the majors with direction.

The Market Movers

For the DAX: It was a mixed day for the auto sector on Monday. Daimler led the way, rising by 1.72%, with Continental and BMW gaining 1.06% and 0.96% respectively. Volkswagen bucked the trend, however, falling by 0.72%.

It was also a mixed day for the banks. Deutsche Bank rose by 0.68%, while Commerzbank fell by 0.32%.

From the CAC, it was a mixed day for the banks. BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole slipped by 0.08% and 0.03% respectively. Soc Gen found support, however, rising by 0.87%.

It was also a mixed day for the French auto sector. Stellantis NV rose by 0.93%, while Renault declined by 0.17%.

Air France-KLM and Airbus SE ended the day with losses of 1.56% and 1.19% respectively.

On the VIX Index

A run of 3 consecutive days in the red came to an end for the VIX on Monday.

Partially reversing a 1.53% decline on Friday, the VIX rose by 1.32% to end the day at 16.91.

The NASDAQ fell by 0.36%, with the Dow and the S&P500 ending the day with modest losses of 0.16% and 0.02% respectively.

VIX 130421 Daily Chart

The Day Ahead

It’s a busier day ahead on the European economic calendar. April ZEW Economic Sentiment figures for Germany and the Eurozone will be in focus later today.

Expect plenty of interest in the numbers, with market sensitivity to sentiment on the rise of late.

From the U.S, March inflation figures will also draw interest later in the day.

Away from the economic calendar, updates on the EU’s vaccination program will also need monitoring on the day.

The Futures

In the futures markets, at the time of writing, the Dow Mini was down by 16 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.

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