HIGHLIGHTS
WORLD ECONOMIC & MARKET DEVELOPMENTS
GLOBAL MARKETS: US retail sales rose by 0.5%mom in June mainly on the back of a 0.9%mom gain in motor vehicle sales, following an upwards revised increase of 1.3%mom in May, the largest since September 2017. Solid US June retail sales, together with a tightening labor market and firming inflation, support the view for a rebound in US GDP to an annualized growth rate close to 4% in Q2 from 2% in Q1 and further gradual Fed rate hikes. Focus today is on Fed Chair Jerome Powell who will deliver the FOMC’s semi-annual Monetary Policy Report before the Senate Banking Committee, the first leg of this two-day testimony.
GREECE: On the privatisations front, according to press reports DGComp has greenlighted the acquisition of the 66% stake in DESFA by the consortium composed of the companies “Snam S.p.A.”, “Enagás Internacional S.L.U.” and “Fluxys S.A.” and the file will now be submitted to the Court of Audit for pre-contractual audit. According to the preliminary data released yesterday by the Ministry of Finance for the execution of the State Budget on a modified cash basis, the State Budget balance for the period January – June 2018 presented a deficit of €2,318 million against the target of the MTFS 2019-2022 explanatory report of a deficit of €3,249 million.
SOUTH EASTERN EUROPE
BULGARIA: Inflation accelerated for a third consecutive month on an annual basis to 3.2% YoY in June vs. 2.6% YoY in May.
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