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Current Futures: Dow +4.00, S&P -0.10, NASDAQ +3.00
European markets are trading mixed, on very light volume in Wednesday trade. At the same time, the S&P futures managed to gain some points, while the Asian cash markets closed higher, but trading volumes remained light.
European markets posted small gains in early trade, but started heading lower shortly after the German IFO report, even though the numbers came in better than expected. Currently, most European markets are swinging around the break-even line, trying to move decisively in a direction, but interestingly, only a small number of regional indexes managed to move more than 1%, indicating a general lack of momentum in the market.
The commodity shares, which declined for a second consecutive day, pulled most European markets lower but, the banking sector made a positive contribution, off-setting some of the declines coming from the commodity companies. In the U.K. FTSE, the banking sector was among the best performers in the index, while the raw materials companies were the worst. The same situation could be seen in the German Dax, were Commerzbank and Allianz were the best two performers.
During the European session, the IFO report showed that the German business confidence improved for a fifth month in a row in August, suggesting that the corporate environment is led by an upbeat sentiment. The German IFO report is the latest addition to a list that is becoming bigger on a weekly basis showing that the Euro-area is recovering at a sustainable pace. This happens, even though a few weeks back, most analysts were saying that the Euro-area would probably lag behind.
Crude oil for August delivery was recently trading at $72.70 per barrel, higher by $0.70.
Gold for August delivery was recently trading higher by $5.20 to $949.30.
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