Global market report - March 8

China markets tumbled today as weak export figures reignited global growth worries, while investors looked ahead to US jobs data

James Gard 8 March, 2019 | 7:00PM
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North America

 

US jobs data for February dominates the global economic agenda data. Ahead of the market open, the non-farm payrolls are forecast to have grown by 180,000, lower than the 340,000 seen in January. But there is always the prospect of a surprise jump in the job numbers to excite dollar bulls.

Canadian employment numbers are out at the same time, with a slight dip expected for February jobs. The unemployment rate is forecast to stay steady at 5.8%.

Europe

 

Stock markets in Europe caught the chill from Asia, with main indices in Germany and France adding to yesterday’s losses, with mining companies and carmakers falling.

Investors are still digesting Thursday’s ECB meeting in which growth forecasts were hacked down to 1.1% for the year

The FTSE 100 was lower, edging back below 7,100 points.

Troubled retailer Debenhams (DEB) saw a jump in its share price on news of a possible rescue.

Asia

 

After a recent strong run, China shares went abruptly into reverse today as export data brought worries over global growth to the fore.

After a move above 3,000 points, taking the index back into bull market territory, the Shanghai Composite Index slipped nearly 4.5% to close at 2,969 points.

Japan’s Nikkei shed 2% on the day to close just above 21,000 points, a level it breached in mid-February.

 

Japan’s Nikkei was the worst performer in percentage terms, shedding nearly 2% on Friday’s close to 22,271 points.

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James Gard

James Gard  James Gard is senior editor for Morningstar.co.uk.

 

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