The American economy is showing new signs of weakness. For the eighth consecutive week, claims for unemployment benefits remained above the threshold of 400 claims (422 against a forecast of 415). The figure is further confirmation of the slowdown in the recovery, to which the high level of raw material prices contributes. Industrial orders in April also fell by 1,2%, slightly below the expectations of economists, who indicated them at -1%. The data disappointed Wall Street, extinguishing at the beginning the hopes of a rebound after Wednesday's session, the worst in the last ten months. In the afternoon the indices fluctuated around parity: the Dow Jones +0,01, the Staandard & Poor's 0,14 +500, while the Nasdaq marked +0,43.
TRICHET: ONLY ONE EU MINISTER OF FINANCE
Meanwhile, the president of the ECB, Jean-Claude Trichet, who will hand over the baton to Mario Draghi in November, has inaugurated the chapter of political reflections across the board, as befits a leader on the way out: "I hope - he said on the occasion of the withdrawal of the Charlemagne prize – that Europe will soon have, like a single central banker, a common finance minister”. Such a minister, Trichet added, need not necessarily have a huge budget. But, on the contrary, he will have to be able to exercise control and guidance across the board. And, above all, he will have to have the veto weapon against decisions that threaten to condition the growth of the euro area, a mountain which, the banker points out, "is not in crisis at all". In short, Trichet hopes for an authority capable of imposing more effective fiscal discipline measures and capable of avoiding irresponsible behavior from a fiscal point of view, which was the first cause of the Greek crisis. Meanwhile, expectations are growing for the details of the 6,4 billion package that Greece will present to the president of the Eurogroup, Jean Claude Juncker. The measures include an acceleration of privatizations, cuts in public spending and revenue interventions such as tax increases and lower exemptions. The tax plan should unlock the next tranche (12 billion euros) of the international loan. Finally, the news of the brilliant outcome of the Spanish Bonos auction has arrived. Madrid placed 3- and 4-year bonds with slightly higher yields than the previous auction, but in the face of higher demand than supply.
EUROPEAN EXCHANGES NEGATIVE, BUT GOOD NEWS FOR FIAT
The European lists closed in negative territory: -1,70% for Paris and -1,83 for Frankfurt, -1,27 for London. The losses in Piazza Affari were smaller, where the Ftse/Mib lost 0,79% despite the rebound of Unicredit (+0,39%) and Intesa (+0,23), while the discount on the issue price of the new securities (3,808 euros) continues to weigh heavily on Ubi, which has suffered a 5,36% drop. In the last 24 hours, Fiat has accumulated a series of positive news: in Italy in May, in a still weak car market, the Lingotto recovered market share, returning to above 30%. In Russia, the Turin-based company has signed an agreement with the government to invest 1,1 billion dollars and build 120 vehicles a year, taking advantage of state incentives. In America, Chrysler increased sales 10% to its best May since 2008. Finally, in Brazil, auto sales rose 27% in May to 318.560 units. The result? The stock lost 2,27% in the wake of the auto sector, the most penalized when the sensation of a slowdown in growth gained ground. The loss of Pirelli was also heavy (-2,25%). Another day of passion for Stm (-2,80%). It is the third consecutive day of decline for the stock of the semiconductor giant. The stock still suffers from the profit warning launched by Nokia last Tuesday: the Finnish group has drastically cut the indications of revenues and profits for the second quarter of 2011 and canceled those previously provided for the entire year, without providing new ones. The Semiconductor Industry Association said global chip sales fell 2,2% in April. All sector stocks remain weak in Europe.
CREMONINI RESIGNS AS CHAIRMAN OF MARR
The resignation of Vincenzo Cremonini from the position of chairman of the board of directors of the Marr company is significant on the stock exchange list. The decision was taken to protect the company following the Consob resolution, which ordered a disqualification sanction for a period of four months and a fine of 0,6 million euro for having bought Cremonini shares on the stock exchange before of the announcement of the takeover bid to withdraw the Cremonini share from the list. The stock lost 0,28%.
