Author: Lei Wei
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – European stocks fell on Friday as uncertainty in major economies weighed on investors even as a rate-cutting cycle began, while global blackouts hit services for airlines, banks and financial services.
It’s been a tumultuous week for markets, clouded by rising U.S.-China trade tensions, uncertainty about the fate of U.S. President Joe Biden in the presidential race, disappointing Chinese economic data and a bleak Third Plenum outcome. , triggering a sell-off in technology stocks.
In currency markets, recent rounds of intervention by Tokyo have also made traders nervous.
“We’re probably just getting a taste of what’s to come. It’s going to be more turmoil,” said Matt Simpson, senior market analyst at City Index.
Ground flights at major U.S. airlines were grounded on Friday because of communications problems, while other airlines, banks and media companies around the world reported system outages that were disrupting their operations.
The LSEG Group’s Workspace news and information platform failed, affecting access to users around the world and causing disruptions across financial markets.
European stocks fell 0.6% in early trading, with London stocks down 0.7%.
In Asia, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1.6% and was on track for its worst week in three months, with a drop of nearly 3%.
Nasdaq futures rose 0.16%, while Nasdaq futures rose 0.3%.
Asian technology stocks continued to slump, with the South Korean technology index and the Taiwan stock market falling 1% and 2% respectively.
In China, investors were disappointed by the lack of details on implementation steps to achieve economic policy goals at the end of Thursday’s closely watched plenary session.
Chinese officials acknowledged on Friday that the sweeping economic goals contained “many complex contradictions,” signaling a bumpy road to policy implementation.
China’s blue-chip stocks were last up 0.55, but the CSI 300 real estate index fell about 2% as weakness in the real estate sector continued to affect China’s growth prospects.
Vishnu Varathan, chief economist for Asia ex-Japan at Mizuho Bank, said: “Beyond the blanket platitudes of no stimulus, economic policy references that focus on quality over quantity may also It means a willingness to accept a slowdown in overall growth.
price view
The euro last traded at $1.0887, down 0.4% in the previous session, after the European Central Bank kept interest rates unchanged as expected, but opened the door to a rate cut in September as it downgraded its view on the euro zone’s economic outlook.
Nick Rees, currency market analyst at MonFX, said: “The policy statement did not reveal much and provided no meaningful changes since June – continuing to emphasize a data-dependent approach to policymaking.”
“We still believe a September rate cut remains the base case.”
Meanwhile, the dollar held steady against a basket of currencies, moving away from four-month lows hit earlier this week.
The pound fell to $1.2934 after data showed UK retail sales fell more than expected in June.
The dollar was supported in part by strong U.S. manufacturing data and unemployment data that showed little sign of a significant slowdown in the labor market, even as traders were still pricing in a September rate cut from the Federal Reserve.
The yen last traded at 157.41 yen per dollar but is set to edge higher this week, helped by a series of suspected intervention measures to support the yen and an acceleration in core inflation last month, raising concerns about the Bank of Japan expectations still exist.
In commodities, oil prices fell. Futures fell 0.4% to $84.7 a barrel, while futures fell 0.58% to $82.34 a barrel. [O/R]
Gold prices fell 0.6%, retreating from a record high of $2,483.60 an ounce hit earlier this week on the prospect of lower global interest rates. [GOL/]
