Economic Data
(PH) Philippines Jun Overseas Workers Remittances: $1.8B v $1.8B prior; Y/Y: 4.2 v 5.1% prior
(FI) Finland Jun Current Account: +€260M v -€490M prior
(CZ) Czech Jun Export Price Index Y/Y: 5.1% v 4.0% prior; Import Price Index Y/Y: 6.6 v 6.1% prior
(CZ) Czech July PPI (Industrial) M/M: -0.3% v -0.2%e; Y/Y: 1.3% v 1.4%e
(DK) Denmark July Wholesale Prices M/M: +0.4 v -0.7% prior; Y/Y: 1.2% v 1.2% prior
(HU) Hungary Jun Final Industrial Production M/M: -2.2% v -2.2% prelim; Y/Y: 0.6 v 0.6% prelim
(NO) Norway July Trade Balance (NOK): 30.3B v 29.5B prior
(UK) Bank of England (BOE) Monetary Policy Committee Minutes showed the vote for both interest rate and Asset Purchase Target were unanimous (9 to 0) to maintain current levels of 0.50% and £375B respectively
(UK) July Jobless Claims Change: -5.9K v +6.0Ke; Claimant Count Rate:4.9% v 4.9%e
(UK) Jun Average Weekly Earnings 3M/Y: 1.6% v 1.7%e; Weekly Earnings ex-Bonus 3M/Y: 1.8% v 1.9%e
(UK) Jun ILO Unemployment Rate: 8.0% v 8.1%e; Employment Change 3M/3M: 201K v 165Ke
(MA) Malaysia July CPI Y/Y: 1.4% v 1.6%e
(MA) Malaysia Q2 GDP Y/Y: 5.4% v 4.6%e
Fixed Income:
(RU) Russia sold RUB6.5B vs. RUB15B indicated in 2017 OFZ Bonds; Yield 7.62% vs. guidance of 7.57-7.62%
(EU) ECB allotted $9.3B (highest amount since Oct 2008) in 7-Day USD Liquidity Tender at fixed 0.64% vs. $7.0B prior
(EU) ECB allotted $4,5B in 3-Month USD Liquidity Tender at fixed 0.64% vs. $2.8B prior
(SE) Sweden sold SEK10B vs. SEK10B indicated in 3-month Bills; Yield 0.994%
SPEAKERS/FIXED INCOME/FX/COMMODITIES/ERRATUM
Notes/Observations
Assumption Day holiday in Europe, ITA, Austria and Greece closed
UK employment data better than expected
BOE Minutes: Did not show any discussion of an interest rate cut
China PBoC may purchase govt bonds in the secondary markets to supply liquidity
Equities
Indices: FTSE 100 -0.30% at 5845, DAX -0.40% at 6948, CAC-40 -0.20% at 3442, IBEX-35 -0.30% at 7106, FTSE MIB (closed), SMI +0.25% at 6522, S&P 500 Futures -0.10% at 1399.75
Amid thin market conditions, most European equity indices are slightly lower on profit taking and the scaling back of easing expectations, following the release of better than data out of Europe and the US. Of note, the DAX is weaker, despite the rise being seen in Bund yields. Banks are trading mixed, while resource related companies are lower (tracking the declines in commodity prices).
Standard Chartered [STAN.UK] has gained over 2% on speculation that the firm could pay up to $340M to settle allegations related to Iran which were brought by regulators in New York. In Hong Kong, Standard Chartered's shares traded higher by over 6% and closed up by ~3.6%. Resolution [RSL.UK] is higher by more than 5%, as the company reported its H1 results and raised its interim dividend. Construction firm Balfour Beatty [BBY.UK] is trading slightly higher following the release of its H1 results. Eurasian Natural Resources [ENRC.UK] shares are lower by over 2%, as the company cut its interim dividend. UK companies being weighed down by ex-dividend factors include Anglo American [AAL.UK], British American Tobacco [BATS.UK], HSBC [HSBA.UK], Man Group [EML.UK], Rio Tinto [RIO.UK] and Vedanta Resources [VED.UK]. KPN [KPN.NL] has declined by over 1.5% on the move by the firm to cancel the sale process for its base unit in Belgium, citing market conditions. Swiss cement manufacturer Holcim [HOLN.CH] is lower by over 1%, as H1 sales missed consensus expectations. Spain's Bankia [BKIA.ES] has outperformed most European banks amid the tightening in peripheral debt spreads. Additionally, there was speculation last week that EU officials were preparing a capital injection for the company.