Italian Manufacturing PMI registered at a four-month high of 49.9 in January, up from December’s 19-month low of 48.4. Analysts were forecasting smaller increase to 49.3. Each of the headline index’s sub-components imparted a positive directional influence, the greatest being from output and employment.
From Eurozone, on Tuesday, Spanish Unemployment Change figures were released. The number of unemployed registered at the offices of the Public Employment Services has increased in January 2015 to 77,980 people and places the total at 4,525,691 people. Analysts were expecting increase by 83,400. Although January is a month that has always increased unemployment, this month is the smallest increase since 2007. In the last seven years, the registered unemployment in January had grown by an average of 144,000 people.
Wednesday's session brought Spanish and Italian Services PMI figures as well as Eurozone Retail Sales data. Spanish Services PMI rose for the second month running, posting 56.7 in January from 54.3 in the previous month. Analysts were anticipating smaller increase to 54.5. The fifteenth consecutive increase in activity was sharp and the strongest since August 2014. All monitored sectors posted expansions in activity, with the fastest rises seen at Transport & Storage and Financial Intermediation companies.
At 51.2, up from 49.4 in December, Italian Services PMI indicated a modest pick-up in business activity at the start of the year. Incline to 49.9 was forecasted. That marked the third increase in business activity in the past four months.
In December 2014 compared with November 2014, the seasonally adjusted volume of retail trade rose by 0.3% in both the euro area (EA18) and the EU28. Analysts were expecting 0.1% decline. In November retail trade rose by 0.7% and 0.9% respectively. In December 2014 compared with December 2013 the retail sales index increased by 2.8% in the euro area and by 3.2% in the EU28.
This week markets will be looking at:
French Industrial Production (Tuesday 8:45)
French Prelim GDP (Friday 7:30)
German Prelim GDP (Friday 8:00)
French Prelim Non-Farm Payrolls (Friday 8:45)
Italian Prelim GDP (Friday 10:00)
Flash GDP (Friday 11:00)
