Trading was subdued at the start of Friday, the European markets struggling to find the energy to reclaim yesterday’s losses.
Waking up to the news that the UK’s national debt has hit £2 trillion for the first time, but also that retail sales rose 3.6% month-on-month in July and were 3% above pre-pandemic levels, the FTSE couldn’t quite decide on a firm direction. Instead it drifted around 15 points lower, flitting back and forth across the key 6000 level.
What it does for the rest of the session is potentially going to be dictated by August’s flash PMIs. The manufacturing reading is expected to climb from 53.3 to 54.0, while serves is forecast to rise from 56.5 to 57.0.
If the Eurozone’s figures are anything to go by, however, UK investors may be disappointed. Both the French readings severely missed estimates – services fell from 57.3 to 51.9 month-on-month, compared to the 56.3 forecast, with manufacturing surprisingly sinking into contraction territory at 49.0, well off the predicted 53.0.
German manufacturing, meanwhile, did climb from 51.0 to 53.0 month-on-month, surpassing the forecast 52.2, but with services unexpectedly slipping from 55.6 to 50.8.
Investors did admittedly take those flash PMI flops in their stride – the DAX and CAC were up 0.3% and 0.1% after the bell.
Looking further ahead and the Dow Jones is currently keeping its cards close to its chest, the futures pointing to an unchanged open for the US index.
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