European Equities: A Light Economic Calendar Leaves FED Policy in Focus
Economic Calendar
Friday, 20th August
German PPI MoM JUL
The Majors
It was a particularly bearish day for the European majors on Thursday, with the majors heading for a 1st weekly loss of the month.
The CAC40 slid by 2.43%, with the DAX30 and the EuroStoxx600 falling by 1.25% and by 1.54% respectively.
From the Eurozone, there were no major stats to distract the markets.
The overnight FOMC meeting minutes from Wednesday and economic data from the U.S raised the prospects of a near-term move by the FED.
Jitters over an imminent tapering by the FED delivered the downside on the day.
The Stats
There were no major stats from the Eurozone to provide the majors with direction.
From the U.S
Philly FED Manufacturing and weekly jobless claims figures were in focus.
In August, the Philly FED Manufacturing Index fell from 21.9 to 19.4. Economists had forecast an increase to 23.0.
More significantly, in the week ending 13th August, jobless claims fell from 377k to 348k. Economists had forecast a decline to 363k.
The Market Movers
For the DAX: It was a bearish day for the auto sector on Thursday. BMW and Daimler slid by 3.12% and by 3.37% respectively to lead the way down. Continental and Volkswagen ended the day down by 2.13% and by 1.81% respectively.
It was also a bearish day for the banks. Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank ended the day with losses of 2.92% and 1.93% respectively.
From the CAC, it was a bearish day for the banks. Soc Gen slid by 3.03%, with BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole ending the day down by 2.68% and by 2.05% respectively.
Things were not much better for the French auto sector. Stellantis NV slid by 3.56%, with Renault falling by 2.60%.
Air France-KLM saw a relatively modest 1.60% decline, while Airbus SE slid by 3.15%.
On the VIX Index
It was a 4th consecutive day in the green for the VIX on Thursday.
Following a 20.44% jump on Wednesday, the VIX rose by 0.46% to end the day at 21.67.
The NASDAQ and the S&P500 rose by 0.11% and by 0.13% respectively, while the Dow slipped by 0.19%.
The Day Ahead
It’s a relatively quiet day ahead on the Eurozone’s economic calendar. Wholesale inflation figures from Germany are due out in the early part of the day.
We don’t expect the numbers to influence, however.
FOMC member chatter ahead of Jackson Hole and COVID-19 will remain the key areas of interest.
The Futures
In the futures markets, at the time of writing, the Dow Mini was down by 27 points.
For a look at all of today’s economic events, check out our economic calendar.
This article was originally posted on FX Empire