European Shares Seen Lower As China Trade Data Disappoints

European stocks may open on a sluggish note Tuesday, as investors focus on Chinese trade data and look for cues from upcoming inflation readings from the world’s largest economies.

China’s exports fell by 14.5 percent in July from a year ago, while imports dropped by 12.4 percent in U.S. dollar terms amid falling demand overseas and in the country, official data showed earlier today.

Both exports and imports sank at their fastest pace since the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, reinforcing the need for further stimulus measures from policymakers.

Asian markets traded mixed as focus shifted to inflation readings from the U.S. and China due this week.

The U.S. dollar strengthened and bond yields were steady, keeping oil and gold prices under pressure.

Federal Reserve governor Michelle Bowman said Monday at a Fed Listens event that more interest rate rises ‘will likely be needed’ despite softer reports on jobs and inflation recently.

Destatis is set to issue Germany’s final consumer and harmonized prices for July later in the day. Consumer price inflation is forecast to ease to 6.2 percent, as initially estimated, from 6.4 percent in June.

U.S. stocks advanced overnight, with financials, consumer services and industrial stocks pacing the gainers ahead of key inflation readings.

The Dow climbed 1.2 percent, the S&P 500 added 0.9 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 0.6 percent.

European stocks ended Monday’s session on a flat note after spending much of the session in the red in response to weak economic data from Germany and the U.K.

The pan European STOXX 600 finished marginally higher. The German DAX edged down marginally and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.1 percent while France’s CAC 40 ended flat with a positive bias.

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