Economic Data
(EU) ECB: €1.1B borrowed in overnight loan facility v €1.0B prior; €475.2B parked in deposit facility vs. €477.3B prior
(DE) Germany Mar GfK Consumer Confidence:6.0 v 6.0e
(CH) Swiss Jan UBS Consumption Indicator: 0.92 v 0.94 prior
(DE) Germany Feb CPI Saxony M/M: +0.7% v -0.4% prior; Y/Y: 2.3% v 2.3% prior
(HU) Hungary Jan Unemployment Rate: 11.1% v 11.0%e
(SE) Sweden Jan PPI M/M: 0.5% v 0.3%e; Y/Y: +0.1 v -0.4%e
(SE) Sweden Jan Retail Sales M/M: 0.1% v 0.0%e; Y/Y: 1.5% v 1.1%e
(SE) Sweden Jan Trade Balance (SEK): 11.3B v 3.0Be
(DE) Germany Feb CPI Brandenburg M/M: +0.8% v -0.4% prior; Y/Y: 2.5% v 2.2% prior
(DE) Germany Feb CPI Hesse M/M: +0.8% v -0.3% prior; Y/Y: 2.2% v 1.9% prior
(ZA) South Africa Q4 GDP Annualized: 3.2% v 3.1%e
(EU) Euro Zone Feb Business Climate: -0.18 v -0.15e; Consumer Confidence: -20.3 v -20.2e; Economic Confidence: 94.4 v 94.0e; Industrial Confidence:-5.8 v -6.9e; Services Confidence: -0.9 v 0.6e
(PT) Portugal Feb Consumer Confidence: -55.8 v -57.1 prior; Economic Climate: -4.9 v -4.7 prior
(BE) Belgium Feb CPI M/M: 0.6% v 0.7% prior; Y/Y: 3.7% v 3.7% prior
Fixed Income:
(ZA) South Africa sold total ZAR2.1B vs. ZAR2.1B indicated in 2017, 2020 and 2031 bonds
(IT) Italy Debt Agency (Tesoro) sold total €6.25B vs. €6.25B indicaqted in 2017 and 2022 Bonds
Sold €2.5B in 4.75% May 2017 BTP; Avg Yield 4.19% v 5.39% prior; Bid-to-cover:1.45 x v 1.3x prior
Sold €3.75B in 5.50% Sept 2022 BTP; Avg Yield 5.50% v 6.08% prior; Bid-to-cover: 1.40x v 1.42x prior
(EU) ECB allotted €133.9B in 1-Day Liquidity Operation (smoothing operation ahead of Wed 3-year lending LTRO)
(EU) ECB allotted €29.5B in 7-Day Main Refinancing vs. €125Be
(HU) Hungary Debt Agency (AKK) sold HUF50B in 3-Month Bills; Avg Yield 7.22% v 7.24% prior; Bid-to-cover: 1.62x v 1.80x prior
SPEAKERS/FIXED INCOME/FX/COMMODITIES/ERRATUM
Notes/Observations
S&P cuts Greece to selective default; market not concerned
Japan states its case on FX at recent G20 meeting in Mexico
German data continues to point country would avoid a technical recession
German Constitutional Court bans use of small sub-parliamentary committee to fast-track bailout actions
Italy bond auction continues to show an improvement in yield
Equities:
FTSE 100 +0.10% at 5919, DAX +0.30% at 6868, CAC-40 +0.24% at 3449, IBEX-35 -0.10% at 8532, FTSE MIB +0.10% at 16,331, SMI flat at 6144
European shares were higher as markets are optimistic ahead of the ECB's second longer term refinancing operations which would provide liquidity for European banks. Gains were however limited after S&P downgraded Greece to Selective Default status. As expected, German parliament voted to approve the second bailout for Greece.
In corporate news, Bayer [BAYN.DE] gave a more cautious outlook for 2012. Company missed both on estimates and net due to the poor performance of the MaterialScience unit. However, the CropScience unit reported growth. Shares traded lower during the session. TomTom [TOM2.NL] dropped 16% after giving a disappointing guidance.