I markets today are dominated by news coming from Chineseeven if the ECB – with yesterday’s meeting – and the Fed – which is preparing for the meeting next week – offer interesting ideas to investors.
I Asian stocks recorded a strong rise, prolonging the global stock rallyafter better-than-expected Chinese economic data fueled positive sentiment stemming from expectations that the world’s major central banks’ tightening campaigns are nearing their peak.
Signs that Beijing’s recent wave of support measures are working to stabilize the economy emerged in August retail sales and industrial production data released this morning. However, the Chinese real estate sector in difficulty continued to be a concern and Chinese indices are closing the session in the red.
Meanwhile, the Bce it may have decided for the last time to raise rates, which have now reached the record level of 4.50%. There Fed heads into next week’s meeting with a likely pause in increases. And the markets hope that the squeeze is over.
China protagonist of the markets with 2 news
Contrasting signals are coming from the dragon, which has been closely observed on its road to recovery.
What stimulated optimism were the updated numbers on retail sales and industrial production which accelerated in August with better-than-expected growth, according to Office for National Statistics data released Friday.
Retail sales grew up 4.6% in August from a year ago, beating expectations of 3% in a Reuters poll. The increase was also faster than the 2.5% year-over-year pace seen in July.
Industrial production increased annually by 4.5% in August, better than the 3.9% expected and faster than the +3.7% reported for July.
Fixed asset investment, however, grew 3.2% year-on-year in August. That missed expectations for a 3.3% increase and was slower than the 3.4% pace reported in July.
The figure was dragged down by a more marked decline in prices real estate investments and by a slowdown in investments in infrastructure. Only the manufacturing sector saw the pace of investments increase.
Statistics bureau spokesman Fu Linghui said the real estate market is still in a period of “adjustment” and has noticed a decline in sales and investments.
A separate report showed even more big drop in new home prices in 10 months — another reminder of the real estate sector’s woes, after Moody’s cut the sector’s outlook to negative on Thursday.
Therefore, if on the one hand there is a recovery of the dragon, on the other the real estate sector continues to raise fears of instability. With these 2 conflicting newsAsian markets celebrated, but with a less enthusiastic mood in China.
Fed, ECB, oil: what signals for the stock markets?
The ECB raised the interest rate to a record level of 4.50%, but hinted that this latest increase will probably be the last. However, the economic projections are gloomy with worsening growth and rising inflation on average due to a return of energy pressures.
Meanwhile, US data showed producer prices rose more than expected in more than a year in August and retail sales also rose more than expected. But both of these figures have been inflated by rising gasoline prices.
As a result, traders have been betting that the Federal Reserve will skip a rate hike next week, in what could be the end of the tightening cycle.
On the energy markets, the crude oil continued its growth in Asian trade, hitting new highs since November.
2023-09-16 23:35:25
#news #China #drives #markets #today #stock #market
