On 15 August, 2017 – Stock indices were mixed in subdued trading with several markets closed for holidays

US retail sales were a bright light in Tuesday’s data.
United States
US stocks were flat Tuesday as the Dow Jones industrials inched up 5.28 points, the S&P slipped 1.23 points and the Nasdaq was down 0.1 percent. Declines in retailers offset positive retail sales data.
Home Depot declined even though the home improvement chain reported strong earnings and raised its forecast. Investors appeared to be worried about supply constraints in the housing market that could be a drag on Home Depot’s future earnings. Lowe’s also retreated. Coach declined after its fourth-quarter sales and its profit forecast for the current fiscal year came up short of estimates.
Dick’s Sporting Goods dropped after it cut its annual forecast after a weak second quarter. Foot Locker and Hibbett Sports also were lower. Nike and Under Armour retreated. Advance Auto Parts tumbled after it slashed its annual forecasts. AutoZone and O’Reilly Automotive also were down.
July retail sales were up a monthly 0.6 percent while sales less autos advanced 0.5 percent. The monthly increase was the biggest in seven months. Sales excluding autos and gas were up 0.5 percent as well. August Empire State manufacturing survey jumped to 25.2 from just 9.8 last time. Export and import prices were up 0.4 percent and 0.1 percent respectively in July. Synchrony and Bank of New York Mellon advanced.
These data reflect observations at 4:00 PM US ET. Gold at the afternoon London fixing was down US$12.00 to US$1,270.30. Copper futures were down 0.9 percent to US$2.88. WTI spot crude was up 1 US cent to US$47.60. Dated Brent spot crude was up 10 US cents to US$50.83. The US dollar was up against the yen, euro, pound and the Canadian and Australian dollars. The currency was unchanged against the Swiss franc. The Dollar Index was up 0.4 percent. The yield on US Treasury 30 year bond was up 3 basis points to 2.84 percent while the yield on the 10 year note was up 4 basis points to 2.26 percent.
Europe
Stock indices mostly advanced Tuesday thanks to the easing of geopolitical tensions, steady crude oil prices and as the euro edged lower against the US dollar. Markets in Italy were closed. The FTSE and DAC added 0.4 percent while the DAX was 0.1 percent higher. The SMI however, slid 0.2 percent.
Banks were broadly higher for a second day after both North Korean and US leaders indicated a willingness to avert a deepening crisis. Danone shares rallied on a Bloomberg report that activist fund Corvex Management has built a stake in the French yogurt maker. Sainsbury’s advanced after the British supermarket firm shelved plans to buy convenience store chain Nisa over fear of concerns from the UK competition watchdog. Next retreated on a broker downgrade.
K+S dropped after its second quarter results fell short of market expectations. Standard Life Aberdeen climbed after a double upgrade to overweight from underweight. BAE Systems advanced on a broker upgrade. Shire gained after submitting an application for the marketing of a treatment for dry eye disease. Hargreaves Lansdown was lower after it reported results.
Air Berlin plunged after the carrier filed for bankruptcy. The company said it was forced to take action after one of its largest investors, Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways, said it would no longer provide financial support. Lufthansa along with EasyJet and Ryanair rallied after the German government said Lufthansa and another airline were in talks to take over some of Air Berlin’s assets.
Germany’s second quarter gross domestic product increased a quarterly 0.6 percent after increasing 0.7 percent in the first quarter and was up 2.1 percent from the same quarter a year ago, an improvement over the first quarter’s 1.7 percent increase.
July consumer prices held steady at 2.6 percent when compared with the same quarter a year ago, helping ease the pressure on the Bank of England to raise interest rates soon. On the month the CPI slipped 0.1 percent.
Asia Pacific
Asian stocks were mixed Tuesday as tensions between the US and North Korea eased further, helping boost investor appetite for riskier assets. The US dollar climbed for a second day after both Korean and US leaders indicated a willingness to avert a deepening crisis over North Korea’s nuclear program. The Sensex and Kospi markets were closed for public holidays.
The Shanghai Composite was up 0.4 percent after a strong rally in the previous session. The Hang Seng retreated 0.3 percent.
The Nikkei and the Topix both added 1.1 percent as the yen weakened against the US dollar for a second day and data showed Japan’s industrial production rebounded more than initially estimated in June. Automakers, financials and technology stocks led the surge. Sompo Holdings, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Mizuho Financial Group were higher. Japanese chip-related companies including Advantest and Tokyo Electron gained. Automakers including Toyota Motor, Nissan Motor and Subaru climbed.
The S&P/ASX was up 0.5 percent and All Ordinaries were 0.4 percent higher. Australia and New Zealand Banking Group rose after reporting a 5.3 percent rise in third-quarter cash profit. Westpac and NAB advanced after minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia’s August policy meeting showed the RBA was confident of achieving “above potential” growth in the coming months without any change in interest rates.
Looking forward
Italy and the Eurozone post second quarter gross domestic product. The UK releases July labour market report. In the US, July housing starts and the minutes from the July FOMC meeting will be released.
Global Stock Markets

*Note — all releases are listed in local time.

Source: Fidelity

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