EUROPEAN EQUITY OPEN: Indices higher after Wall Street/APAC leads, further soothing ECB commentary

OPEN: European indices open higher following constructive sessions on Wall Street and in the overnight APAC session. The rot in the bond complex has eased after ECB official Villeroy added to the soothing sounds that President Lagarde was making earlier in the week, arguing that markets may have hawkishly overreacted to the latest ECB policy meeting, perhaps easing traders fears over an aggressive course of ECB monetary policy normalisation this year. Earnings continue to hit thick and fast in Europe, and the tone is generally constructive. A weekly Refinitiv survey looks for Stoxx 600 earnings to grow +56.2% in the latest earnings season, revised up a little from the 55% estimate from last week. In terms of specifics, energy giant Equinor saw record profits and said it would raise dividends and buybacks; ABN Amro also announced a buyback after its profits jumped. In health care, Qiagen’s profits and outlook were decent. However, materials name Akzo Nobel’s numbers disappointed on raw materials costs, while Siemens Energy reported a net loss due to pressures in its wind unit. Today’s docket sees BoE’s chief economist, a couple of Fed speakers, and earnings from Disney and Uber after the US close (see below).

INDICES: At 08:05GMT, Euro Stoxx 50 +0.9%, FTSE 100 +0.5%, DAX 40 +0.8%, CAC 40 +0.9%, FTSE MIB +1.1%, IBEX 35 +05%, SMI +0.9%. Financials lag as yields pare back, and some stock-specifics (ABN earnings, Deutsche Bank stake sale), though lower yields are supporting tech outperformance. 

NOTABLE MOVERS:

• Weir Group (WEIR LN) +3.9%: Upgraded at GS.


• Barratt Developments (BDEV LN) +3.2%: Earnings.


• Akzo Nobel (AKZA NA) +2%: Earnings, buybacks.


• GSK (GSK LN) +0.8%: Earnings.


• Deutsche Bank (DBK GY) -1.4%: Cerberus selling 15mln shares: reports.


• ABN AMRO (ABN NA) -4.5%: Earnings, buybacks.


• Maersk (MAERSKB DC) -5.3%: Earnings.


• Evolution Gaming (EVO SS) -7%: Earnings.

NOTE: Our full Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News (8/Feb) can be accessed here; additional European Equity News (8/Feb) can be accessed here.

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DAY AHEAD FEBRUARY 9TH:

• 09:00GMT/04:00EST: Italy Industrial Production (DEC)


• 09:30GMT/04:30EST: South Africa SACCI Business Confidence (JAN)


• 10:30GMT/05:30EST: Germany 30-Year Bund Auction


• 11:40GMT/06:40EST: CVS Health Corp (CVS) earnings (preview)


• 12:00GMT/07:00EST: Brazil Inflation (JAN), Retail Sales (DEC)


• 12:00GMT/07:00EST: Mexico Inflation (JAN)


• 12:00GMT/07:00EST: US MBA Mortgage Applications (04/FEB)


• 13:10GMT/08:10EST: BoE Chief Economist Pill


• 15:00GMT/10:00EST: US Wholesale Inventories (DEC)


• 15:30GMT/10:30EST: US EIA Energy Inventories (04/FEB)


• 15:30GMT/10:30EST: Fed's Bowman


• 17:00GMT/12:00EST: BoC Governor Macklem


• 17:00GMT/12:00EST: Fed's Mester


• 18:00GMT/13:00EST: US 10-Year Note Auction


• 21:05GMT/16:05EST: Walt Disney Co (DIS) earnings (preview)


• 21:05GMT/16:05EST: Uber Technologies Inc (UBER) earnings (preview)

09 Feb 2022 - 08:10- Fixed IncomeEconomic Commentary- Source: Newsquawk