After yesterday’s improved risk sentiment and today’s calmer tone, it looked like we were in for a quieter European session. That was until the last half hour, when US futures fell and Japanese stocks also took a brief dip. Of course, it’s still early in the day, but if anything, it’s a sign that some concern still exists.
S&P 500 futures are now down 7 points, or 0.1%, but were recently down around 20 points. Meanwhile, USD/JPY is now also down 0.2% at 146.95, just off the low of around 146.71. That may not mean much, but it could also be a small warning ahead of the weekend.
In yesterday’s trading, traders had the benefit of the improved weekly US unemployment report to rely on. That helped calm nerves and keep the overall market sentiment up. But today they’ll have to seek comfort of their own. And that’s considering that nothing major is on the economic calendar other than the Canadian jobs report.
In Europe, we will get the CPI numbers for Germany and Italy, but these are final estimates so they won’t be too important. Therefore, markets will have to dig a little deeper in the coming sessions to try and maintain yesterday’s bounce. We will see if that can stay that way until Wall Street comes and it’s time for the weekend break.
06:00 GMT – Final CPI figures for Germany in July
08:00 GMT – Final CPI figures for Italy in July
That’s all for the upcoming session. I wish you all the best for the coming days and good luck in trading! Take care.