All the latest economic and financial news, as Tokyo joins the global selloff and the oil price dips again.Eurozone private sector posts weakest growth since 2013Nikkei falls by 3%US crude drops below $50/barrel 9.15am GMT The eurozone has recorded its weakest private sector growth since autumn 2013, in another reminder that Europe’s economy is crying out for help.Data firm Markit reports that Europe’s Big Three economies all struggled in December (as covered earlier in the blog).German economic output posted a mild acceleration at year- end, but the rate of expansion was still lacklustre compared with earlier in 2014 as December saw inflows of new work fall for the second straight month.Output in France fell for the eighth month running, as a slight recovery in service sector business activity failed to offset the deepening downturn in production at manufacturers. Overall new orders posted a modest gain for the first time in four months, but the data by sector showed that this was despite a severe reduction in manufacturing. “Of greatest concerns are the ongoing downturns in France and Italy, alongside the stuttering performance seen in Germany. Any signs of life, with Ireland and Spain most notable in seeing their best growth spells since the global financial crisis, are in danger of being extinguished by malaise spreading from the region’s largest economies unless business and consumer confidence revives. Ouch! Markit Composite #PMI say #Euro zone posts slowest economic growth for over a year in fourth quarter #ECB #QE 8.58am GMT Germany continues to perform better than its euro neighbours. Its service sector recorded steady growth last month, despite firms reporting a drop in new orders.German Services PMI (Dec) comes in at 52.1 exp: 51.4New business at German service providers falls for first time in a year-and-a-half, but headline index steady at 52.1 http://t.co/fx9qFVhkq9 8.54am GMT Could this be a pousse verte of recovery in France? The French service sector PMI beat forecasts, coming in at 50.6 in December versus expectations of 49.8. That shows some growth, and means the wider private sector had it best month since April: Final Markit #France Composite Output Index at 8-month high of 49.7 (47.9 in November) http://t.co/8Nyb24t5Aq 8.51am GMT Bad news for Italy - its service sector contracted in December, according to Markit’s monthly survey.The Italian service sector PMI, based on interviews with purchasing managers at Italian companies, fell to 49.4 from 51.8 in November. “The recent weak trend in new business caught up with services firms in December, with activity levels falling for the first time in three months. As a consequence, the sector looks to have made little to no contribution to growth in the final quarter which, alongside a slight downturn in manufacturing, suggests the private sector economy has more or less stagnated.” 8.46am GMT Here we go again! The price of a barrel of Brent Crude Oil has fallen again today to US $52.20 or 51% lower than a year ago #Disinflation 8.31am GMT Brent crude oil has hit its lowest level since mid-2009, Reuters reports: 8.27am GMT Some good news. Growth in Spain’s service sector accelerated in December, according to the latest survey of purchasing managers (or PMI).Data firm Markit reported that sentiment among Spanish services sector firms hit a near seven-year high. Many reported seeing an increase in new business, both from domestic customers and those overseas.Growth of Spanish service sector improves at end of 2014, headline index at 543 (52.7 in Nov) http://t.co/ejxmnpxIwL http://t.co/VTKEhY7oEl“December’s data pointed to a stronger expansion of the Spanish service sector at the end of 2014, although there has been a little underlying loss of momentum when we look at the trend over the final quarter as a whole. “While we still expect the economy to have remained in an expansionary phase when we see the next set of GDP figures, overall growth may come in a little softer than we have seen in the previous two quarters.” 8.16am GMT Nervous investors have been piling into Japanese government bonds this morning, driving down the yield (or interest rate) on its debt.Japan's 20-year yield falls below 1%: pic.twitter.com/8cIT7NM3Yo 8.15am GMT Europe is trading, and the FTSE 100 has dropped another 9 points to 6408, after sliding 2% yesterday. Other markets are broadly flat. 8.11am GMT It was also a bad day for Australian investors, as Greece’s upcoming general election and fears over the global economy hit sentiment in Sydney.Energy stocks were pummelled, and the big miners and banks fell hard as the leading ASX 200 index ended down 1.6% at 5364.8. 7.59am GMT Stock markets in the Middle East continue to be hit by the falling oil price, with the Dubai exchange tumbling another 5% today.Arab bourses battered again as oil slides http://t.co/2lAKNXHxEM pic.twitter.com/8AmiucDCdB 7.51am GMT Oil is taking another pummelling this morning.Brent crude has shed another 1%, or 57 cents per barrel, to 52.5% in early trading and US crude is down a similar amount at $49.49 per barrel.North Sea Brent breaking to new lows. pic.twitter.com/XbADjgn4oS 7.45am GMT Japan’s stock market has suffered its biggest one-day fall in 10 months, as fears over Greece’s future in the eurozone hit Asian markets.Nikkei playing follower the leader closes down just over 3%. Yen 118.98With oil prices at their lowest since spring 2009, the Tokyo Stock Exchange sub-index of oil and mining shares tumbled 5.5%. Inpex Corp shed 5.8%.Exporters’ shares suffered from a stronger yen, which broke through the 119 level versus the dollar late in the session. Nissan lost 4.4% and Panasonic Corp slipped 3.1%.not a single Nikkei 225 stock rose in Japan today. But a dozen risers on the JPX 400, suggesting this was the usual global macro dumpThe unwind in equities has continued with markets mostly risk-off on flaring oil and Greece concerns. As oil prices venture to levels not seen in over five years, the energy space is predictably the hardest hit, seeing indiscriminate selling across the board. 7.34am GMT Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the financial markets, the global economy, the eurozone, and business.World markets continue to be gripped by fears over Greece’s political uncertainty, and by the sliding oil price.OIL WTI .. starting to get a kicking again trading at $49.50Today’s economic data is likely to reinforce the weakness at play in the euro area with the latest services PMI data for December for Spain, Italy, Germany and France.While Spain and Germany are likely to continue to remain resilient with readings significantly above 50 the current poor relations in Europe of France and Italy continue to underwhelm. Continue reading...
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