Investors cheer fresh economic data out of Europe
Wall Street stocks edged higher in a quiet session overnight, extending gains after dropping sharply at the start of the week on fears that the spread of the Delta virus could hurt the economic recovery. In part, the recovery was due to upbeat results from the latest corporate earnings season. As such, the S&P 500 rose 0.2%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.07%, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.36%.
Asian equities were mixed on Friday, with markets in Japan remaining closed for a holiday. Surges in coronavirus cases around the region capped gains in stocks. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 1.45% and the Shanghai Composite index gave up 0.68%. In Seoul, the Kospi was 0.12% higher, while Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.11%.
In Europe, stocks opened in positive territory, as investors cheered fresh economic data from across the continent. The pan-European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.5% in early trade. The Eurozone manufacturing PMI arrived at 62.6 in July versus 62.5 expectations and 63.4 last. In Germany, manufacturing PMI arrived at 65.6 in July versus 64.2 expected.
Meanwhile, the USD index advances for the second session in a row on Friday despite mixed dynamics against major rivals. As such, the euro turned marginally positive on the day in recent trading, in part due to relatively upbeat economic data out of the Eurozone. EURUSD was last seen at 1.1770, slightly off intraday lows seen at 1.1760. Still, the common currency remains on the defensive and could see fresh losses if the US PMIs surprise to the upside later today.
