Freitag, Juli 04

Weaker momentum in the German and French manufacturing sector

Eurozone: PPI (May): -0.6% m/m as expected (prior: -2.2%)

  • PPI y/y: 0.3% as expected (prior: 0.7%)
  • Inflationary pressures continue to ease in the eurozone.

 

France: Industrial production (May): -0.5% m/m vs 0.3% expected (prior: -1.4%)

  • IP y/y: -0.9% vs 0.1% expected (prior: -1.9%)
  • Industrial production unexpectedly declined in May with manufacturing production down 1% m/m and down 0.1% y/y.

 

Germany: Factory orders (May): -1.4% m/m vs -0.2% expected (prior: 1.6% revised from 0.6%)

  • Y/y: 5.3% vs 5.7% expected (prior: 5.8%, revised from 4.8%)
  • Industrial orders fell in May, but they are still significantly up in Q2, helped by some upward revisions to prior months.
  • Orders have been very uneven at a sector level, with weakness mainly in terms of domestic orders.

 

Switzerland: Unemployment rate (sa) (June): 2.9% (prior: 2.8% revised from 2.9%)

  • The unemployment rate remains on an upward trend after having bottomed just under 2% in H1 2023.
Donnerstag, Juli 03

US unemployment rate decreases for the wrong reason

US: Non-farm payrolls (Jun): 147k vs 106k expected (prior: 144k revised from 139k)

  • The US economy added more jobs than expected, primarily driven by state government and health care sectors. In contrast, the federal government continued to shed jobs.
  • The unemployment rate unexpectedly dipped to 4.1% from 4.2%, while wage growth slowed to 0.2% from 0.4%. Annually, wages grew by 3.7%, down from 3.9%.
  • The recent decline in the unemployment rate appears to be driven by a shrinking labor force. The participation rate unexpectedly fell from 62.4% to 62.3%, suggesting that the change is more about supply-side dynamics than increased demand for workers.
  • Initial jobless claims came lower than expected (233k vs. 241k) while continuing claims stabilized at 1964k.
  • So far, there are few signs of the trade war is hitting payrolls.
  • This seemingly robust report diminishes the likelihood of a July rate cut by the Fed, amid concerns about a weakening labor market. Instead, it supports a cautious, wait-and-see approach. We expect two rate cuts in the fourth quarter.

US: Trade balance (May): -71.5 bn USD vs -71.0 bn expected (prior: -60.3 bn revised from -61.6 bn)

  • The US trade deficit widened unexpectedly, driven by a 4% drop in exports, while imports saw a slight decrease of 0.1%.
  • Significant declines in exports were observed in nonmonetary gold, natural gas, and finished metal shapes.

US: ISM Services (Jun): 50.8 vs 50.6 expected (prior: 49.9)

  • The ISM services index surprised by rising above the 50 level, signaling expansion after a month of contraction.
  • Key areas showed strong rebounds: business activity increased to 54.2 from 50, new orders rose to 51.3 from 46.4, inventories climbed to 52.7 from 49.7, and new export orders improved to 51.1 from 48.5.
  • Although price pressures eased slightly, with the index at 67.5 compared to 68.7, concerns about rising operational costs were more frequent.
  • Middle East tensions emerged in June's commentary, yet no supply chain disruptions were reported.

US: Factory orders (May): 8.2% m/m as expected (prior: -3.9% revised from -3.2%)

  • New orders for US manufactured goods surged in May, and more than offset the revised 3.9% decline from previous month.
  • According to the US Census Bureau, firms likely took advantage of the suspension of "Liberation Day" tariffs by the US government to front-load orders before the escalation with China and the broader potential resumption in July.

 Switzerland: CPI (Jun): 0.1% m/m vs -0.1% expected (prior: -0.1%)

  • Swiss headline inflation exceeded expectations, aligning the Q2 average with the SNB's forecast of 0%.
  • Both domestic and imported inflation rose, with domestic inflation increasing by 0.1 pp to 0.7%, and imported inflation climbing by 0.5 pp to 1.9%. The rise in imported prices may be influenced by the CHF appreciation against the USD.
  • This print supports the SNB's stance from their June meeting: the threshold for implementing negative interest rates remains high, barring a significant downturn in the macroeconomic outlook. Chairman Schlegel emphasized that negative rates are reserved for "exceptional times".
  • However, a substantial escalation in trade tensions or a significant narrowing of the rate differential with the ECB, leading to further CHF appreciation, could increase the likelihood of negative interest rates.

Eurozone: Services PMI (Jun F): 50.5 vs 50.0 expected (prior: 49.7)

  • Final print of the eurozone services PMI has been revised higher from the flash estimate of 50 and firmly above the initial market expectations of 50 to reflect a slight expansion in the area's services activity.
  • Composite was also revised higher to 50.6 from 50.2.

UK: Services PMI (Jun F): 52.8 vs 51.3 expected (prior: 50.9)

  • Final estimation reveals a rapid expansion in the country's services sector, the strongest since August 2024, driven by renewed improvements in order books.
  • New orders saw a slight increase, marking the second rise this year and achieving the fastest growth rate since November 2024, fueled by heightened domestic demand.
  • Despite this growth, employment in the sector continues to contract significantly, hindered by rising payroll costs and weak capacity pressures.
Mittwoch, Juli 02

US private sector cuts job in June

US: ADP Employment change (Jun): -33k vs 98k expected (prior: 29k revised from 37k)

  • The US private sector experienced its first job decline since March 2023, marking a shift from the revised increase of 29k jobs in May and falling well below the expected gain of 95k
  • The decline was led by losses in professional and business services, along with education and health services.
  • Meanwhile, manufacturing, construction, and mining sectors experienced payroll growth.
  • While the print briefly supported the front end, the move was quickly reversed given ADP’s poor ability in predicting BLS private payrolls due tomorrow.

 

Eurozone: Unemployment rate (May): 6.3% vs 6.2% expected (prior: 6.2%)

  • Eurozone jobless rate edges up from record low, with the bloc’s largest economies, Germany (3.7%) and the Netherlands (3.8%) reported the lowest unemployment rates, while Spain (10.8%), France (7.1%), and Italy (6.5%) continued to post higher levels.
Dienstag, Juli 01

Mixed US ISM manufacturing index

US: ISM Manufacturing (June): 49.0 vs 48.8 expected (prior: 48.5)

  • New orders: 46.4 vs 48.1 expected (prior: 47.6)
  • Employment: 45.0 vs 47.1 expected (prior: 46.8)
  • This gauge on the US manufacturing sector ticked higher in June but 11remains in contraction mode for the fourth consecutive month, with a worsening momentum for new orders and employment.
  • The price measure edged marginally higher to 69.7, close to the highest level since June 2022.
  • Company comments suggest that they are accelerating headcount reductions due to lower demand ahead of trade-policy announcements.

 US: JOLTS Job Openings (May): 7769k vs 7300k expected (prior: 7395k)

  • Job openings unexpectedly rose to the highest level since November.
  • However, three quarters of the increase in openings is explained by the hospitality sectors. The finance, transportation, warehousing and healthcare also saw gains, but they were more moderate.
  • This adds to evidence that the job market remained solid in May.

US: Construction spending (May): -0.3% m/m vs -0.2% expected (prior: -0.2% revised from -0.4%)

  • The construction sector continues to suffer from high interest rates which weigh on affordability while non-residential construction faces uncertainty related to tariffs.

Eurozone: CPI estimate (June Prel.): 2.0% y/y as expected (prior: 1.9%)

  • Core CPI: 2.3% as expected (prior: 2.3%)
  • Fully in line with expectation with the headline inflation up 10bp from a 9-month low and core CPI steady at the lowest level since early 2022, thanks to a stronger euro and lower energy costs.

Eurozone: Manufacturing PMI (June F.): 49.5 vs 49.4 expected (prior: 49.4)

  • The final release is marginally higher thanks to a positive surprise in Spain (51.4 vs 50.5 expected, after 50.5 in May) vs a disappointing print in Italy (48.4 vs 49.5 expected, after 49.2 in May)

Germany: Unemployment rate (June): 6.3% vs 6.4% expected (prior: 6.3%)

  • Unemployment claims rate SA: 11k vs 15k expected (prior: 33k)

Switzerland: Manufacturing PMI (June): 49.6 vs 44.0 expected (prior: 42.1)

  • This stronger-than-expected rebound (to a 4-month high) probably reflects hope that an agreement with the US about the tariffs can be found.
Montag, Juni 30

German inflation unexpectedly slowed

Germany: CPI (Jun P): 0.1% m/m vs 0.3% expected (prior: 0.2%)

  • Germany experienced an unexpected slowdown in inflation, primarily due to declining food prices and certain core categories, which outweighed rising road fuel costs.
  • According to both the EU-harmonised HICP and the national CPI measure, consumer prices rose 2.0% y/y in June after 2.1% in May.
  • Looking forward, eurozone inflation should remain in a 1.9%-2.0% range over the next months and ECB should consider maintaining interest rates steady until the end of the year, with a potential rate cut in December.

 

Italy: CPI (Jun P): 0.2% m/m vs 0.3% expected (prior: -0.1%)

  • In June, Italy's inflation rate slowed more than anticipated. Rising fuel costs, driven by Middle East tensions, were offset by a decrease in utility bills. On an annual basis, inflation remained steady at 1.9%.

 

Eurozone: M3 (May): 3.9% y/y vs 4.0% expected (prior: 3.9%)

  • M3 growth remained stable at 3.9%, slightly below expectations. Credit growth to the private sector held steady at 2.8% y/y.
  • Notably, loans to non-financial corporations decreased by 0.1pp. to 2.5% y/y, while household loans increased by 0.1 pp. to 2% y/y.
  • Overall, the recovery in credit growth seems to have lost momentum in May.

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