Dr. Platon Monokroussos, Chief Market Economist, Deputy General Manager, Eurobank Ergasias S.A
HIGHLIGHTS
WORLD ECONOMIC & MARKET DEVELOPMENTS
GLOBAL MARKETS: Taking their cue from the positive tone in Asian equity markets today, major European bourses were firmer in early trade on Tuesday assisted by tentative signs of stabilization in China, the world’s second biggest economy. In FX markets, the USD retained a firm tone in European trade supported by lingering expectations for a rate hike at the upcoming FOMC meeting on December 15-16. On the data front, focus today is on US ISM-manufacturing for November where consensus is for a modest improvement to 50.5 from 50.1 in the prior month.
GREECE: Speaking at the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce conference in Athens yesterday, Greece’s Minister of Finance Euclid Tsakalotos said that official discussions on additional debt relief measures to Greece should commence in February and the said issue should be resolved by the end of March when the Greek government will present to the institutions the new growth plan. Elsewhere, according to data released yesterday by the Hellenic Statistical Authority, the year-on-year growth of the retail trade volume index, including automotive fuel, fell by 3.2%YoY in September, recording the fourth consecutive annual decline. On the data front, the seasonally adjusted Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 48.1 in November, the highest level in the last seven months.
SOUTH EASTERN EUROPE
BULGARIA: According to the Ministry of Finance, the government was still running a surplus in the first ten months of the year despite a hefty deficit recorded in October (BGN 557.6mn).
SERBIA: According to final national accounts data, economic activity slid back into contraction of 0.4%QoQ in Q315 on a seasonally adjusted basis, following a positive growth reading of 2.0%QoQ a quarter earlier. The year-on-year non-seasonally adjusted reading showed upwardly revised growth of 2.2% (revised from 2.0% previously reported).
Viewers can read the ful report herebelow:
Daily Overview December 1 2015
