Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, as China’s factory sector contracts again and European growth slows * Latest: Eurozone firms cut prices as growth slows * Weak Chinese data: What the analysts say * Chinese market fell again today * The agenda 12.49pm GMT Over in Greece escalating protests have put the leftist-led government of Alexis Tsipras increasingly on the defensive as international creditors launch another round of talks in the crisis-hit country. “the country appears to be on the brink of a social explosion.” 12.04pm GMT Four hours into the trading months, and European stock markest are mostly in the red. The slowdown in eurozone factory growth, following the latest contraction in China, have given investors little reason for optimism. After appearing to have shrugged off China’s dire data at the open, the European markets soon abandoned their gains, the situation exacerbated by a mixed showing from the region’s own manufacturing figures. Despite managing a 19-month high PMI of 52.9 (against the 51.9 forecast), the UK’s manufacturing picture wasn’t as clear cut as that number suggests; export orders continued to fall, whilst the worrying trend of companies cutting their staffing levels persisted. Those factors, and the generally unconvinced tone from analysts, took the spark out of what initially looked like a decent number, leaving the FTSE to tumble into the red as Monday progressed. Continue reading...
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