Monday, 3rd May 2021
German Retail Sales (MoM) (Mar)
Spanish Manufacturing PMI (Apr)
Italian Manufacturing PMI (Apr)
French Manufacturing PMI (Apr) Final
German Manufacturing PMI (Apr) Final
Eurozone Manufacturing PMI (Apr) Final
Wednesday, 5th May 2021
Spanish Services PMI (Apr)
Italian Services PMI (Apr)
French Services PMI (Apr) Final
German Services PMI (Apr) Final
Eurozone Markit Composite PMI (Apr) Final
Eurozone Services PMI (Apr) Final
Thursday, 6th May 2021
German Factory Orders (MoM) (Mar)
IHS Markit Construction PMI (Apr)
Eurozone Retail Sales (MoM) (Mar)
Friday, 7th May 2021
German Industrial Production (MoM) (Mar)
German Trade Balance (Mar)
ECB President Lagarde Speech
The Majors
It was a relatively bearish end to the week for the European majors on Friday. The CAC40 fell by 0.53%, with the DAX30 and the EuroStoxx600 ending the day down by 0.12% and by 0.28% respectively.
Economic data from the Eurozone weighed on the European majors at the end of the week.
1st quarter GDP numbers from Germany and the Eurozone in particular left the majors in the red, with French consumer spending figures also a drag on Friday.
From the U.S, positive economic data failed to support the majors, with the latest round of stats pointing to economic divergence stemming from extended COVID-19 containment measures across the Eurozone.
The Stats
It was a busy day on the economic calendar on Friday.
From France, consumer spending, inflation, and 1st quarter GDP figures were in focus.
German and Eurozone GDP numbers for the 1st quarter also drew attention alongside prelim Eurozone inflation figures for April.
French Data
In March, consumer spending fell by 1.1% reversing a 0.3% rise from February. Economists had forecast a 0.4% rise.
Inflationary pressures picked up in April, according to prelim figures. The annual rate of inflation accelerated from 1.1% to 1.3%.
While consumption figures disappointed at the end of the 1st quarter, GDP numbers came in ahead of forecasts.
The French economy expanded by 0.4% in the 1st quarter, coming in ahead of a forecasted 0.1% growth. In the 4th quarter, the economy had contracted by 1.4%.
German Economy
In the 1st quarter, the German economy contracted by 1.7%, which was worse than a forecasted 1.5% contraction. The German economy had expanded by a modest 0.3% in the 4th quarter.
Year-on-year, the economy contracted by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. The economy had contracted by 2.7% in the final quarter of last year. Economists had forecast a contraction of 3.6%.
The Eurozone
For the Eurozone, inflationary pressures continued to pick up, with the annual rate of inflation accelerating from 1.3% to 1.6% in April.
In the 1st quarter, the Eurozone economy contracted by 0.6%, quarter-on-quarter, and by 1.8% compared with Q1 2020.
Economists had forecast a quarterly contraction of 0.8% and a year-on-year contraction of 2.0%.
In the 4th quarter, the economy had contracted by 0.7% quarter-on-quarter and by 4.9% year-on-year.
While the Eurozone economy contracted once more in the 1st quarter, the unemployment rate eased from 8.2% to 8.1%.
From the U.S
The FED’s preferred inflation measure and personal spending were in focus alongside finalized consumer sentiment and Chicago PMI figures.
Aligned with stats from earlier in the week, economic data from the U.S continued to impress at the end of the week.
In March, the core PCE Price Index increased by 1.8% year-on-year, up from 1.4% in February. Personal spending was also on the rise, supported by improving labor market and economic conditions. Spending jumped by 4.2%, reversing a 1.0% decline from February.
In April, the Michigan Consumer Sentiment index increased from 86.5 to 88.3, up from a prelim 87.4. Consumer expectations were also on the rise, with the consumer expectations index increasing from 79.7 to 82.7, up from a prelim 79.7.
Also positive, was a jump in the Chicago PMI from 66.3 to 72.1 in April.
The Market Movers
For the DAX: It was another mixed day for the auto sector on Friday. BMW and Continental fell by 0.86% and by 0.58% respectively, with Volkswagen declining by 0.16%. Daimler bucked the trend, rising by 0.16%.
It was also a mixed day for the banks. Deutsche Bank fell by 0.48%, while Commerzbank ended the day up by 0.86%.
From the CAC, it was a mixed day for the banks. Credit Agricole rose by 0.23%, while BNP Paribas and Soc Gen fell by 0.82% and 0.65% respectively.
It was a bearish day for the French auto sector. Stellantis NV and Renault ended the day down by 0.14% and by 0.33% respectively.
Air France-KLM fell by 1.88%, with Airbus SE slipping by 0.06%.
On the VIX Index
It was a second consecutive day in the green for the VIX on Friday.
Following on from a 1.91 gain from Thursday, the VIX rose by 5.68% to end the day at 18.61.
The NASDAQ and the S&P500 fell by 0.85% and by 0.72% respectively, with the Dow ending the day down by 0.54%.
The Day Ahead
It’s a busy day ahead on the European economic calendar. German retail sales figures are due out along with manufacturing PMIs for Italy and Spain.
Finalized manufacturing PMIs for France, Germany, and the Eurozone are also due out.
Barring marked revision to prelim figures, Italy ad the Eurozone’s PMIs and German retail sales will have the greatest influence.
From the U.S, ISM Manufacturing PMI figures for April will also provide the majors with direction late in the session.
The Futures
In the futures markets, at the time of writing, the Dow Mini was up by 117 points, with the DAX up 23 points.
For a look at all of today’s economic events, check out our economic calendar.
This article was originally posted on FX Empire