European Stock Futures Edge Higher; Chinese Support Helps Tone

© Reuters

By Peter Nurse

AiVIF.com - European stock markets are expected to open slightly higher Tuesday, rebounding after the negative start to the week as Chinese authorities pledged to stimulate the world’s second-largest economy.

At 02:05 ET (06:05 GMT), the DAX futures contract in Germany traded 0.1% higher, CAC 40 futures in France climbed 0.2%, and the FTSE 100 futures contract in the U.K. rose 0.2%, returning after the U.K.’s Bank Holiday weekend.

China will step up measures to boost demand and stabilize employment and prices in the second half of the year to optimize economic outcomes, the country's finance ministry said on Tuesday, as policymakers strive to prop up faltering growth.

These comments followed a package of new economic stimulus measures announced by China's cabinet last week, including billions of dollars worth of policy financing.

News that the Chinese authorities are attempting to boost their country’s economy marks a contrast with the tightening monetary policies seen through most of the rest of the world.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell struck a hawkish tone at the Jackson Hole conference last week, suggesting that the U.S. central bank would not flinch in tightening credit to rein in inflation, even at the onset of recession.

Powell’s comments were echoed by European Central Bank board member Isabel Schnabel over the weekend, stating that central banks must act aggressively to tackle rising inflation.

"Even if we enter a recession, we have little choice but to continue the normalization path," Schnabel said. "If there was a de-anchoring of inflation expectations, the effect on the economy would be even worse."

With this in mind, investors will be looking after this week’s data to gauge if the recession fears around the world are justified.

Eurozone consumer confidence data for August are due later in the session, but most eyes will be on Friday’s monthly U.S. jobs report, and markets may not like a strong number if it supports the basis for a continuation of aggressive interest rate hikes.

Oil prices edged lower Tuesday, handing back some of the previous session’s hefty gains, as attention turns to the upcoming OPEC+ meeting and potential supply cuts.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia, and allies, a group called OPEC+, is set to meet on Sept. 5, and Saudi Arabia last week raised the possibility of cutting output to offset any major decline in crude rates.

By 02:05 ET, U.S. crude futures edged lower at $97.00 a barrel, while the Brent contract fell 0.2% to $102.69. Both benchmarks posted gains of over 4% on Monday, the biggest increase in more than a month.

Additionally, gold futures fell 0.2% to $1,746.20/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.1% higher at 1.0001.