Thursday's session on European stock markets saw declines in most indices. Weakness in the fashion and luxury goods sector took its toll on sentiment in France, where the CAC40 there was down more than 0.92% today; Hermes shares were down more than 7%. At the same time, Britain's FTSE100 lost 0.34% and Germany's DAX added 0.02%.
Eurozone retail sales came in -0.1% MoM vs 0.1% exp. and -0.3% previously; sales rose 0.1% on a yearly basis, while market's expected 0.2%. German industrial orders in July rose 2.9% vs -1.7% exp. after 3.9% decline previously
German new orders for vehicle construction (aircraft, ships, trains, military vehicles) came in 86.5% higher MoM and contributed to the jump in industrial orders in July.
Wall Street is also dominated by bearish sentiments. The biggest losers at the moment are the Dow Jones and Russell 2000 indexes, which are losing nearly 0.75%. At the same time, the S&P500 is losing 0.43%. The Nasdaq, on the other hand, is doing much better, currently adding 0.1%. The declines in this market were triggered primarily by mixed readings of macro data from the US.
Shares of used-car reseller Copart and technology giant, Hewlett Packard Enterprises, are down 7% and 5% respectively after quarterly results that failed to satisfy Wall Street's expectations. Nvidia gains 0.3% while Tesla surges 4% on FSD, Tesla-bot and Robotaxi day scheduled at 10 October
Yields on 10-year bonds fell 2 basis points today to 3.74%, as pressure on the US dollar continues, with EURUSD trading up 0.17% to 1.11. In the broad FX market, the New Zealand dollar and the Japanese yen are the best performers. The Canadian dollar, however, is trading under downward pressure.
Macro data from the US today turned out to be well below forecasts, except the August ISM services reading, although even in its case the scale of the positive surprise was traceable
Challenger's report on Layoffs in the U.S. economy indicated the largest job cuts since Q1 2023, especially in the technology industry. The reading indicated 75.8k vs. 25.8k previously
Private employment change came in at 99k vs. 143.5k forecast, after 122k previously - well below expectations
S&P ISM services data for August indicated 51.5, against 51.4 expectations, after 51.4 in July. The price sub-index rose to 57.6, although investors had expected a drop to 56 after 57 the previous month.
Orders rose slightly, from 52.4 to 53, while employment fell to 50.2 versus 51.1 in the previous reading. The activity sub-index came in slightly weaker than forecast, but still well above the 50-point limit
Oil erased gains, initially supported by reports that OPEC+ postponed a 2-month production increase; it eventually fell after an API report showed higher-than-expected US gasoline inventories. OIL and WTI are trading flat.
NATGAS gains 6.2% after a lower-than-expected EIA report on the change in US inventories of the commodity.
Cryptocurrencies are trading another weak session; Bitcoin loses -3%, and investors continue to see net outflows from US ETFs, while demand for so-called altcoins remains low
US Treasury Secretary Yellen commented that '(...) The job market no longer looks like an inflation-pressure source (...) has become less tight but continues to create jobs. Every indication of consumer & investment spending is solid.'