Asia
After the strong gains made by Chinese shares earlier in the week, the main CSI 300 index abruptly went into reverse on Thursday, sliding nearly 3% to 4102 points. Bond market volatility, which saw a spike in yields, was blamed for the equity slump amid fears of higher corporate borrowing costs. The Chinese government, via the state news agency, made a point of signalling that shares in alcohol firm Moutai (600519) were overheating and the shares subsequently fell. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was also lower, shedding just under 1% to 29,707 points.
Japan’s stock markets are closed for a national holiday.
Europe
Wednesday’s Budget downgraded UK growth forecasts for the coming years. Today’s data focused on the prior quarter for the economy – third quarter GDP grew by 0.4% quarter on quarter, exactly as forecast, and the same reading as the second quarter. The country’s Office for Budget Responsibility yesterday forecast that the UK would grow by 1.5% this year – against a forecast for above 2% in the spring Budget – and fall in subsequent years before rising again in 2022.
The UK’s biggest corporate shock was a profits warning from dominant energy provider Centrica (CNA), which pushed it shares down over 17%. Centrica’s fall weighed on the FTSE 100, which was trading 20 points lower at 7,400 points in midmorning trading.
Water company Severn Trent (SVT), which is a stock often held by UK income funds, released interim results on Thursday. The company’s shares initially rose on news of increased profits and a 6% hike in the dividend, but they have subsequently slipped back.
In the eurozone, provisional purchasing manager index surveys were released for November. Services and manufacturing numbers were better than expected: the French services and German manufacturing sectors were strong drivers of growth in the eurozone headline figure. France’s CAC 40 was modestly higher on the news.
North America
US stock markets are closed today for Thanksgiving but will re-open again briefly on Friday morning. US services and manufacturing surveys will be released on Friday afternoon.
Canadian retail sales are expected to have grown in September on a month-on-month basis, compared with a slight fall in the previous month.
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