Today investors finally have some interesting economic reports to look forward to, namely PMI data.
First off, Australia published its flash manufacturing PMI report for June, which was slightly lower than the previous one at 58.4 but still shows economic growth. Likewise, the services PMI was also a bit lower at 56 than last month’s number.
Japan published its April coincident and leading economic index reports, both slightly better than the previous reports.
There was a pleasant surprise from Germany, whose manufacturing, services, and composite PMIs for June all exceeded the forecasts, with the composite climbing all the way to 60.4. These reports bode well for the European Union’s most powerful economy.
Unsurprisingly, the eurozone-wide manufacturing PMI came in at 63.1, while the composite index reached 59.2, both better than investors had hoped.
The United Kingdom delivered more of a mixed batch of reports. The manufacturing PMI was better than expected, but the services and composite indices failed to meet the forecasts, though they were still above 60.
Later today the United States will publish its own manufacturing PMI report for June.
Other events today include speeches by several Federal Reserve officials, the European Central Bank, and the publication of the minutes from the Bank of Japan’s last meeting. The Fed speeches seem especially relevant, as this week the central bank is on a mission to calm investors after its policy meeting last week had such a dramatic impact on the financial markets.
Thanks to efforts by Fed Chair Jerome Powell and other notable governors of the central bank to reduce the hopes of speedy hawkishness, stocks are likely going to continue recovering today, with all major US indices posting moderate gains.
Meanwhile, China continues to tighten the noose around Hong Kong’s autonomy. In the latest instance of the Chinese government seeking to stop any sort of political opposition from Hong Kong, the well-known pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily announced it will be closing down after a surprise police raid.
In addition, despite China’s efforts to control (and put an end to) Bitcoin and cryptocurrency trading in general, today Bitcoin is once again recovering in price. It was close to dropping below $30,000 yesterday and experts warned that should that important support level be breached, there can be a big slide downward, but for now at least it seems the largest cryptocurrency managed to shrug off the pressure and it back above $34,000.
