Europe markets open firmly in the green
The U.K.’s FTSE 100 index was trading 0.7% higher at 8:20 a.m. London time.
Germany’s DAX was up 0.52%, France’s CAC was 0.49% higher and Italy’s FTSE MIB was up 0.51%.
All sectors were in the green, with tech stocks among the best performers, up 1.1%.
— Katrina Bishop
U.K. retail sales miss indicates a ‘slow start to the golden quarter’
Capital Economics said the U.K.’s disappointing retail sales marked a “slow start to the golden quarter, but the outlook is improving.”
Ashley Webb, U.K. economist, said the decline in sales could be indicative of concerns about tax rises following Finance Minister Rachel Reeves’ tax-and-spend budget.
“But despite those tax rises, we still think a solid rise in real earnings in Q4 will support retail sales volumes in the run up to the crucial festive period,” he wrote in a note on Friday.
October’s fall in spending was relatively broad-based, he added, with clothing stores reporting the biggest slide in retail sales, down 3.1%.
Looking ahead, Ashley said he expects a “chunky” rise in real earnings in the fourth quarter to support retail sales looking ahead.
“Despite the tax rises announced in the Budget, we still expect the retail sector to contribute to above-consensus consumer spending growth of +0.8% in 2024, +1.3% in 2025 and +1.8% in 2026,” he noted.
— Katrina Bishop
Sterling hits six-month low after retail sales slide
The British pound fell to a six-month low against the U.S. dollar following U.K. retail sales data, but has since recouped some losses.
The country’s Office for National Statistics on Friday said that retail sales volumes lost 0.7% month-on-month in October, well below economists’ expectations of a 0.3% decline, according to a Reuters poll. It follows a rise of 0.1% in September.
Sterling fell to around $1.2555 following the data release, its lowest level since the middle of May.
By 7:38 a.m. London time, the pound had pared some losses, trading down 0.16% at $1.2566.
GBP/USD
German economy ekes out 0.1% growth in third quarter
A electric Ford Explorer is seen as the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visits the electric car production line at the Ford automobile factory on June 12, 2023 in Cologne, Germany.
Lukas Schulze | Getty Images
The German economy expanded by 0.1% in the third quarter on the previous three months — lower than a preliminary reading of 0.2% for the period.
“In the 2nd quarter, economic performance dropped 0.3%, after having risen slightly (+0.2%) in the 1st quarter. Following this generally subdued performance in the first half of 2024, the German economy begins the second half of the year with modest growth,” the country’s Federal Statistical Office said in a statement.
— Katrina Bishop
CNBC Pro: HSBC names 2 China stock picks for 2025 — and gives one over 70% upside
Chinese markets are “turning a corner” following a series of government stimulus measures, HSBC said, naming its top stock ideas for 2025.
“Mainland China has announced a slew of policies to help ensure that local governments can pay their bills and service debt. This should reduce the risk of an immediate slowdown in growth in mainland China and the market has so far reacted positively to these initiatives,” the investment bank’s analysts wrote in a Nov. 19 research note.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Amala Balakrishner
European markets: Here are the opening calls
European markets are expected to open higher on Friday.
The U.K.’s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 33 points higher at 8,184, Germany’s DAX up 28 points at 19,174, France’s CAC up 5 points at 7,221 and Italy’s FTSE MIB up 52 points at 33,402, according to data from IG.
— Sam Meredith
