Europe midday: Shares slip into red as EZ PMI, retail sales disappoint

(Sharecast News) - European shares were in the red on Thursday, as investors digested weak eurozone construction and retail sales data and also looked ahead to US non-farm payroll figures. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was down 0.3% to 513 with most major bourses lower. Spain's IBEX and Germany's DAX both bucked the downward trend.

"The US Labor report failed to quell fears about the direction of the world's largest economy. Job openings fell more than expected to 7.67mn, although hires rose 0.2% month on month to 273,000," said Derren Nathan, head of equity research, at Hargreaves Lansdown.

"All eyes now turn to Friday's pivotal non-farm payrolls count which is expected to show an increase of 161,000 and a small fall in the unemployment rate to 4.2%. Markets are still pricing in a 0.25% rate cut this month, but only just, with the odds of a 0.5% cut now shortening further."

EUROZONE CONSTRUCTION STRUGGLES

In economic news, construction activity in the eurozone remained in the doldrums during August with a sharp fall in new orders and rising prices causing concern as employers laid off staff, according to a survey published on Thursday.

The HCOB eurozone Construction purchasing managers index was unchanged from July's six-month low of 41.4, signalling a steep reduction in total construction activity across the single currency area - a mark below 50 indicates contraction. Activity has now fallen in each of the last 28 months.

Data showed the construction sector remaining in decline midway through the third quarter of 2024, with new orders falling "markedly", leading to a further reduction in construction activity and sustained retrenchment of employment and purchasing.

Meanwhile retail sales in the eurozone edged only marginally higher in July, official data showed, as a recovery struggled to take hold.

According to Eurostat, the European Union's statistics office, the seasonally-adjusted retail trade volume increased by just 0.1% in June. In the wider EU, sales ticked up 0.2%.

In June, sales fell by 0.4% in both the Eurozone and wider bloc.

German factory orders rose by 2.9% month-on-month in July, said statistics body Destatis, smashing forecasts of a 1.5% fall although the numbers were slightly distorted by some larger orders.

However, Europe's largest economy was likely to stagnate this year, the country's Ifo institute said on Thursday, as it abandoned its previous forecast of 0.4% growth.

In its updated forecasts, Ifo said it expects the economy to grow by 0.9% next year, below a previous 1.5% forecast, and by 1.5% in 2026.

Oil prices ticked slightly higher after sharp falls earlier in the week on rumours the OPEC+ group was ready to unwind production cuts. West Texas Intermediate was trading at $69.57, up 0.53%, while Brent Crude was at $73.19 a rise of 0.67%.

VOLVO GAINS AS EV TARGET DITCHED

In equity news, shares in Volvo gained as the vehicle manufacturer announced it had abandoned its target to produce only fully electric cars by 2030, saying it now expects it will also be selling some hybrid vehicles by that date.

SSP shares fell as the travel food outlet operator was hit by a downgrade to 'equalweight' at Morgan Stanley.

Associated British Foods fell as it said like‐for‐like sales at Primark were expected to fall by around 0.5% in the second half of the financial year, with a projected decline of 0.9% in the fourth quarter due to wet weather in the UK and Ireland which hit footfall and seasonal sales in womenswear and footwear.

Housebuilder Vistry gained as it announced a further £130m share buyback as it posted a 7% increase in first-half pre-tax profit.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com