Current reporting from the world’s leading markets: the important updates, prominent stocks, bonds and analyst updates
19:45 – A red day in European stock markets: the French CAC index was cut by 1.8%. The German DAX fell by 1.7%, this after it was announced that the German economy contracted by 0.4% in the fourth quarter of 2022. In the UK, a surprising improvement was recorded in the consumer confidence index – the British Potsey recorded a relatively slight decrease of 0.4%.
18:35 – The stock of the meat substitute manufacturer Beyond Meat jumps by 15% after presenting a smaller than expected quarterly loss: the company recorded a loss of $1.05 per share in the fourth quarter of 2022 compared to market forecasts for a larger loss of $1.18 per share. Revenues stood at $79.9 million against an expected revenue of $75.7 million.
17:15 – Consumer confidence in the US economy is at a 13-month high, according to the index published by the University of Michigan, as of this month. The consumer sentiment index rose in February to a reading of 67 points compared to market expectations for 66.4 points. Inflation expectations (consumer price index) of consumers For the coming year, this month stands at 4.1%, the forecasts were for 4.2%.
16:30 – Wall Street drops at the opening following the published inflation data (see previous update): the Dow Jones index retreated by 1.2%, the S&P 500 weakened by 1.3% and the Nasdaq by minus 1.65%. 10-year US bond yield Increases by 7 basis points to 3.955%.
All Dow Jones stocks are in the red – Boeing is cut by 4.3% at the bottom of the index, 97 out of 100 Nasdaq stocks are in retreat, Amazon loses 2%, Apple wipes out 1.6%.
15:50 – The core index (excluding food and energy) of private consumption expenditures in the US for the month of January climbed by 0.6% on a monthly basis, above expectations for a monthly increase of 0.5%. On an annual basis, an increase of 5.4% was recorded (compared to January 2022), against forecasts for an increase of 5%. The core index in an annual calculation increased by 4.7% compared to an expected increase of 4.3%.
Personal spending jumped 1.8% in January compared to December, well above forecasts for a monthly increase of 1.3% (after a monthly decline in December). Private income rose by 0.6% in January, below expectations for a 1% increase.
14:55 – Contracts on the stock indices on the New York stock exchanges drop by up to 0.9% in anticipation of the inflation data (private consumption expenditures for the month of January), and the 10-year US bond yield climbs by 3 basis points to 3.91%.
Economists in the economy expect a 0.5% increase in the core index (excluding food and energy products) in January compared to December.
Private consumption spending in the US is the main engine in the US economy (70% of economic activity) and one of the most important indicators for the US central bank to measure inflation.
14:00 – Trading on the stock exchanges in Europe moved to a mixed trend. Cac and Dax lose 0.4% and 0.5%, respectively. UK Potsey rises 0.2%.
A GfK survey found that the UK consumer confidence index rose six points to minus 38 – above forecasts for minus 43. This is the highest level of the index since April 2022, and a recovery from the historic low recorded in January. However the index is still negative – meaning most consumers are still pessimistic about their future economic situation.
In Germany, the index for March published by GfK rose to minus 30.5, from minus 33.8 – slightly below forecasts of minus 30.
In France, the consumer confidence index published by the Government Bureau of Statistics fell to 82 points, compared to 83 in January.
11:00 – Trading in European stock markets is going up slightly. Putsy and KAC climb by 0.3%, Dax in Frankfurt strengthens by 0.1%.
Germany’s economy shrank by 0.4% in the fourth quarter of 2022, compared to the third quarter – this is how the country’s statistics bureau announced; Preliminary data indicated a decrease of 0.2%. In the third quarter, the largest economy in Europe grew by 0.5%.
Rolls Royce shares jump 4% on the London Stock Exchange, after it reported yesterday that it beat forecasts. The luxury car manufacturer recorded a profit of 652 million euros last year, 238 million euros more than in 2021 – analysts expected a profit of 478 million euros.
A mixed lock in Asia: the Nikkei index rose by 1.4% amid the words of the candidate for governor (see previous update), Shanghai lost 0.6% and Hong Kong weakened by 1.7%.
10:30 – US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said last night that the US will return to economic talks with China “at the appropriate time”. “I don’t have a specific time window for that, but I believe it’s important to do it, and I’m certainly open to having those conversations,” she said ahead of the G20 financial leaders’ summit in Bangalore, India. Yellen noted that there are “many areas” in which the US and China should work together to deal with global challenges, such as food security, debt levels, and climate change.
08:30 – The stock markets in Asia are trading in a mixed trend. The Nikkei index rises by 1.2%, Shanghai loses 0.7% and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong weakens by 1.5%.
The candidate for the governor of the Central Bank of Japan, Kazuo Ueda expressed support for the current monetary policy, which advocates maintaining a relatively low interest rate. According to him, the increase in inflation in Japan is largely due to an increase in import prices, and not from strong domestic demand. “The central bank’s policy is necessary and appropriate, despite some side effects, to achieve the 2% inflation target.
Today it was announced that the annual inflation rate in Japan reached 4.2% in January – in line with forecasts; The core index (CPI) excluding food and energy, rose by 3.2%.
Alibaba shares fell 4.7% in Hong Kong, even though the company beat profit forecasts for the fiscal third quarter ended Dec. 31. The online trading company recorded revenues of $35.9 billion in the quarter, an increase of 2%, at an annual rate – and above forecasts. The net profit jumped by 69% compared to the corresponding period. However, CEO Daniel Zhang said in the analyst call that online sales of products remained weak in January-February, amid the outbreak of the Corona virus in China.