In This Article:
Economic Calendar:
Monday, 3rd August
Spanish Manufacturing PMI (Jul)
Italian Manufacturing PMI (Jul)
French Manufacturing PMI (Jul) Final
German Manufacturing PMI (Jul) Final
Eurozone Manufacturing PMI (Jul) Final
Wednesday, 5th August
Spanish Services PMI (Jul)
Italian Services PMI (Jul)
French Services PMI (Jul) Final
German Services PMI (Jul) Final
Eurozone Markit Composite PMI (Jul) Final
Eurozone Services PMI (Jul) Final
Eurozone Retail Sales (MoM) (Jun)
Thursday, 6th August
German Factory Orders (MoM) (Jun)
IHS Markit Construction PMI (Jul)
Friday, 7th August
German Industrial Production (MoM) (Jun)
German Trade Balance (Jun)
French Non-Farm Payrolls (QoQ) (Q2)
The Majors
It was another bearish day for the European majors on Friday, with the CAC40 sliding by 1.43% to lead the way. The DAX30 and EuroStoxx600 weren’t far behind, with losses of 0.54% and 0.89% respectively.
Negative sentiment towards the economic outlook weighed as the markets responded further to dire 2nd quarter GDP numbers.
The disappointing figures together with the upward trend in new COVID-19 cases continued to raise doubts over a speedy economic recovery.
In the week, Spain and the UK were amongst countries having to reintroduce containment measures.
The negative sentiment ultimately overshadowed upbeat tech earnings results on the day.
The Stats
It was another busy day on the Eurozone economic calendar. Key stats included 2nd quarter GDP from France and the Eurozone. June retail sales figures from France and Germany and Eurozone and member state prelim inflation figures were also in focus.
It was the GDP numbers that weighed, however. In the 2nd quarter, the French economy contracted by 13.8%, with the Eurozone economy contracting by 12.1%.
German retail sales rose by 5.9% in June, following a 12.7% jump in May, with French consumer spending up by 9.0%. In May, French consumer spending had surged by 37.4%.
While both sets of numbers came in ahead of forecasts there were not good enough to shift the mood.
From the U.S
Economic data included June’s personal spending and inflation figures. While inflationary pressures eased, personal spending was on the rise at the end of the quarter.
The increase was not enough to ease concerns over the U.S economic outlook, however.
Personal spending rose by 5.6%, while the annual rate of inflation softened from 1.0% to 0.90% In May, personal spending had jumped by 8.5%.
Late in the European session, finalized consumer sentiment figures were revised down, adding to the market angst.
The Market Movers
For the DAX: It was another particularly bearish day for the auto sector on Friday. Continental and Volkswagen slid by 5.00% and by 4.39% to lead the way down. BMW and Daimler saw more modest losses of 3.85% and 3.67% respectively.