Global Markets Retreat, Recession Fear Reemerges, Labor Data Beats

The U.S. Futures Are Moving Lower

The U.S. index futures are pointing to a lower open on Friday snapping a 4-day winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and NASDAQ Composite are all down about -0.30% in the premarket session. The move is driven by renewed fears of economic recession, fears that have been stoked by the coronavirus outbreak. So far, more than 28,000 people have been infected with nearly 650 dead. Businesses around the world are shuttering their Chinese operations in an effort to contain the spread. Unfortunately, this is aiding a slowdown in China that could infect the rest of the global economy.

On the economic front, U.S. Non-Farm Payrolls came in much stronger than expected as warmer weather spurred hiring in key areas. The headline 225,000 new job creation was accompanied by upward revisions to the previous two months and an uptick in labor force participation. On the earnings front, wages grew 0.25% in the month and are up 3.1% YOY. In stock news, shares of Nestle are moving higher following its EPS report. The candy maker beat top and bottom-line consensus estimates and upped it divided more than expected.

European Markes Are Lowe At Midday

The EU indices are lower at midday as they track Asian markets lower. The FTSE is in the lead with a decline of -0.61% while the DAX is down -0.55% and the CAC -0.32%. Aiding the decline is a downgrade to Chinese GDP outlook. Analysts are now looking for a 5.0% GDP growth in 2020, down 0.7% from the previous consensus estimate. In other economic news, the German Industrial Output figure for January was -3.5% and well below the consensus.

Share of Credit Suisse are among the most active in today’s session. The Swiss banking giant’s CEO has decided to step down amid a spying scandal. Shares of the stock fell more than -2.0% in early trading but clawed back some of the loss by midday. Shares of Lorcal are also moving but in the opposite direction. the company reported a better than expected revenue increase for the 4th quarter and sent the stock up 0.80%.

Asian Mixed, Shanghai Moves Higher

Shares in Asia are mixed at the end of the session on Friday. The Shanghai Composite is the only index to post a gain for the day and that 0.33%. Others in the region posted losses in the range of -0.19% to -0.72% led by the Korean Kospi. Korean shares were hurt by news out of the automaker industry pointing to reduced production and delays related to the Chinese viral outbreak. Casino’s are also moving lower, more than -1.0% on average, after Macau shut down its gaming industry in an attempt to further stop the spread of coronavirus.