Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day
Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day
(Bloomberg) --
Xi wants some respect, it’s PMI day, and Trump waits for Democrats’ next move on impeachment. Here are some of the things people in markets are talking about today.
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
In his first comments on a partial trade deal with the U.S., President Xi Jinping said Beijing wanted to work toward a phase-one agreement on the “basis of mutual respect and equality.” Xi added that though his nation neither initiated nor coveted a trade war, China would fight back when necessary. Vice Premier Liu He, the country’s top trade negotiator, wrote a lengthy op-ed in the Communist Party’s flagship People’s Daily highlighting the key role for the market and non-state players -- perhaps an attempt to address one of America’s long-standing criticisms of the country’s economic model.
PMI Day
While there was some sign of improvement in Germany’s ravaged manufacturing sector, this morning’s purchasing managers data for the euro area pointed to continued stagnation in the region’s economy. French manufacturing was one highlight, rising to 51.6 for the month, ahead of all estimates in a Bloomberg survey. There were no bright spots in a dismal report for the U.K. that showed the economy’s performance was the worst since July 2016 with manufacturing and services PMI both coming in below 50 and below expectations. PMI data for the U.S. economy is published at 9:45 a.m. Eastern Time.
Now what?
The House finished two weeks of public testimony from mostly career Foreign Service officer and civil servant witnesses yesterday, leaving Democrats with a decision to make. They could either decide they have enough evidence to proceed with the next step toward impeaching President Donald Trump, or they could schedule more hearings in an attempt to hear from some of those the president has barred from appearing. In a sign that there are some other things happening in Washington, Trump yesterday signed a short-term spending measure that puts off the risk of a government shutdown until Dec. 20 at the earliest.
Markets rise
Mixed trade news and economic data have not stopped equity markets around the world posting gains. Overnight, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.2% while Japan’s Topix index closed 0.1% higher after three days of declines. In Europe, the Stoxx 600 Index was 0.4% higher at 5:50 a.m. with miners and energy companies the best performers. S&P 500 futures pointed to a gain at the open, the 10-year Treasury yield was at 1.755% and gold was higher.
Coming up…
Aside from PMIs, it is a fairly quiet end to the week on the data front. Canadian retail sales at 8:30 a.m. may test or confirm Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz’s assertion that the economy is doing well. University of Michigan consumer sentiment is published at 10:00 a.m., and Kansas City Fed Manufacturing is at 11:00 a.m. There are no monetary policy speakers scheduled for today. Foot Locker Inc. and JM Smucker Co. are among the companies reporting earnings.
What we've been reading
This is what's caught our eye over the last 24 hours.
- Trump’s Fed pick Judy Shelton cast doubt on central bank independence.
- Lagarde calls for government help in first major ECB speech.
- Tesla truck demo gets awkward as Musk’s shatterproof windows break.
- Deutsche Bank CEO’s last-ditch plan to save the best of his business.
- Goldman sees a “baby bear market” in bonds.
- Uber may have just days left in London.
- Science has been underestimating the effects of sleep deprivation.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Sid Verma at sverma100@bloomberg.net, Yakob Peterseil
©2019 Bloomberg L.P.