GREECE, OIL AND GDP OF THE EUROZONE, THE 3 KNOTS OF THE DAY
BULL IN ASIA. A WALL STREET GROUPON BUMP
Bull peeps out in Tokyo +0,37% and Hong Kong +0,24% exchanges. The publication of the minutes of the meeting of the Japanese central bank, from which emerges the prospect of new stimuli to the economy and the expectation for data on US retail sales, a key signal for understanding the consistency of the recovery in consumption, has encouraged the recovery .
Europe, after a weak opening to the week, awaits the publication of data on the trend of the eurozone's GDP without too many illusions. Meanwhile, the Milan Stock Exchange closed the session slightly lower and at the lows of the session despite the successful outcome of the auction of Italian government bonds: the Ftse Mib index lost 0,11% to 14.532 points. Frankfurt finished down 0,45%, London and Paris down 0,3%.
Lo spread between the Bund and the BTP on 10-year maturities it is at 446 basis points, slightly recovering from Friday (-3 basis points).
In this frame Wall Street it experienced a lackluster day, aligning itself with the low vein of the Old Continent's stock markets: Dow Jones - 0,29%, S&P -0,13%, Nasdaq +0,05%.
Groupon -17%continues to disappoint the market. Quarterly data shows that the online coupon market leader is losing share: sales rose by 45% (to 568,3 million) but remain below analysts' estimates. Since the IPO, the stock has lost 62%.
Worst than Facebook (-46%) on which hangs the sword of Damocles of the end of the lock up on 1,9 billion shares which will take effect on Thursday. Convincing Goldman Sachs not to pour its shares on the market is the first commitment of Sharil Sandberg, the COO of the company who became part (first woman) of the board.
Google announced yesterday that its subsidiary Motorola Mobility, acquired last year for $12,5 billion, will cut 4000 jobs (20 percent of the workforce) and close a third of its international offices.
Behind the apparent calm of the holiday season, old and new obstacles loom. First of all, oil is on fire again, traded this morning, in the WTI version, at 92,77 dollars a barrel. It is the consequence of the growing tensions in the Middle East. Brent crude reached $115 a barrel for the first time since May 4th.
THEeuro it is traded at 1,2343 against the dollar. The devaluation of the single currency (in one year -13,2% against the dollar, -11,7% against the yen) has given new life to the exports of European multinationals, but a new round of "monetary war" with emerging economies is looming : Colombia, Chile and South Korea have already started massive purchases of dollars to weaken the exchange rate, it is likely that China, grappling with a slowdown in exports, will adopt measures in favor of the weak yuan despite American pressure.
The State bailout fund risks a new setback. A new appeal against the rescue mechanism of the eurozone, the ESM, has been presented to the Constitutional Court of Germany. According to the Handelsblatt newspaper, the appeal comes from a group led by Markus Kerber, a professor of technology at the University of Berlin who has long been one of the most ardent critics of the eurozone. The new legal action could force the Court to postpone the decision on the constitutionality of the ESM scheduled for September 12th. The spotlights will also turn on this morning on the Greek tragedy.
This morning the Athens Treasury will try to place 3 billion three-month bonds on the market (the only ones he manages to place) to repay on 20 August a 3,2 billion loan held almost entirely by the European central bank. It is the first step in an increasingly dramatic obstacle course: by the end of the month, Parliament will have to approve another 11,5 billion in cuts to unlock the new tranche of 31 billion in aid needed to pay salaries and pensions. All in an economic situation that plummets. The GDP is down by 6,2%, well beyond the fears of the central bank of Athens which estimated a drop of "only" 2012% for the whole of 4,5. The gross domestic product has been in fixed reverse since the end of 2008 and the overall contraction of the economy has now reached 17,5%.
Yesterday at Milan Stock Exchange the banks came to light, which at the end of the session reduced their initial earnings by more than 2%. Unicredit +1%, Intesa +0,8%. Mediobanca +1%, Banca Popolare di Milano +0,7%, Banca Popolare dell'Emilia +0,2%.
Recommended many utilities. Enel shut down in the afternoon and closed with a rise of 0,3%. A2A +3,3%. Terna +0,3%, Enel Green Power +2%.
Among small cap we note Iren +3,4%. Finanziaria Sviluppo Utilities, the holding company of the Municipalities of Turin and Genoa, Iren's reference shareholder with 35,9%, will be forced to renegotiate the debt of over 180 million with Intesa Sanpaolo. The company's financial statements recorded a net loss of 259 million, caused by the devaluation of the investment in Iren from 1,96 to 1,35 euros (compared to 0,35 euros at yesterday's closing on the Stock Exchange). Fsu has thus agreed on a debt restructuring with Intesa Sanpaolo, which provides for a substantially lengthening of the maturity compared to the previous 2020. Among the blue chips, Mediaset gained 1%. Down 2,5% Stm.
Fondiaria Sai +1,4% (0,955 euro) is back within a step of 1 euro of the price of the new shares of the capital increase. Unipol +0,7%, slightly above the price of the new shares (€2) issued on the occasion of the capital increase.
Prelios fell by losing 13,5%: the real estate company may need to launch a capital increase of up to 150 million euros to cover the losses generated by a series of asset write-downs.
