(Paris) European markets were down on Friday, after the publication of the PMI index in the euro zone which reflected a “very strong” slowdown in growth in June, at the end of a week marked by several statements from central banks .
Wall Street was heading for a lower open, according to futures for all three major indexes.
The European stock markets chained their fifth session of decline in a row and took the path of their worst week since mid-March. Around 7:35 a.m. (Eastern time), Paris yielded 0.20%, London 0.24%, Frankfurt 0.74% and Milan 0.33%.
Investors are now turning to a series of indicators for France, Germany, but especially the euro zone and the United States.
Private sector growth in the euro zone slowed sharply in June, falling to a level close to zero, weighed down by the difficulties of the industry, according to the PMI Flash index published Friday by S&P Global.
The index, calculated on the basis of business surveys, fell to 50.3 in June, after 52.8 in May, the lowest in five months, “signaling a very sharp slowdown in economic growth in region,” S&P said in a statement.
A figure above 50 signals growth in activity, while a figure below indicates decline.
This publication “announces a difficult second half for private companies in the euro zone, characterized by a general decline in order books over the coming months”, commented Cyrus de la Rubia, economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank, a partner institution of S&P to develop the PMI indicator.
In response, the euro fell sharply against the dollar, destabilized by the sharp slowdown in growth in June, according to the Flash index published by S&P Global.
Around 5:40 a.m. (Eastern time), the euro lost 0.93% to 1.0854 dollars.
“The dollar is taking advantage of its safe haven status as market conditions have deteriorated,” commented Ricardo Evangelista, analyst at ActivTrades.
On the bond market, sovereign debt interest rates eased.
The yield on 10-year US government bonds stood at 3.73%, against 3.79% Thursday at the close. The interest rate of the German loan at the same maturity was at 2.35% against 2.49 and the French at 2.88% against 3.02%.
The markets are also digesting a week full of announcements from central banks and their representatives, starting with Jerome Powell, Chairman of the Federal Reserve (Fed), who indicated that the increases in the Fed’s key rates were not over. .
GSK boosted in London by an amicable agreement on Zantac in the United States
The British pharmaceutical giant GSK saw its stock price in London boosted (+5.56%) on Friday morning by the announcement of an amicable agreement in California in the context of a dispute related to the drug against heartburn Zantac , accused by patients of having contributed to their cancer.
Siemens Energy, downwind
German energy company Siemens Energy revealed on Friday that the scale of wind turbine failures at its subsidiary Siemens Gamesa was far greater and more costly than expected, leading to a record plunge in its stock price.
Around 7:30 a.m. (Eastern Time), Siemens Energy shares dropped 33.66% on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, dropping the market capitalization by around 6 billion euros.
On the side of oil and bitcoin
Oil prices continued to fall on Friday, high global interest rates are rekindling concerns about global economic activity and weighing on demand prospects.
Around 7:30 a.m. (Eastern time), a barrel of Brent from the North Sea, for delivery in August, lost 1.36% to 73.26 dollars.
Its American equivalent, a barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery the same month, dropped 1.36% to 68.56 dollars.
Bitcoin dropped 0.37% to $30,045.