European Markets Continue Heading Lower, US Stabilizing
The German DAX is leading the way lower, down 0.3% in early trading. The French CAC 40 and Italian FTSE MIB 35 are both down 0.2%, while the London FTSE and Spanish IBEX 35 are off 0.1%.
In the United States, S&P 500 futures are up 0.2%. The index has closed lower in seven of the last nine trading sessions.
Overnight, markets in Asia fell again in the absence of any notable economic data releases, following a big down day in the U.S. Thursday.
The Japanese Nikkei 225 shed another 0.8%, while the Hong Kong Hang Seng fell 0.1% and the Shanghai Composite finished 0.6% lower.
The only notable economic data releases Friday are July housing starts and building permits data in the United States, due out at 8:30 AM ET, and the preliminary results from the University of Michigan's August consumer confidence survey, out at 9:55.
"So the USD was set to end the week top of the pile in FX but was overhauled by GBP overnight," writes Société Générale analyst Kenneth Broux in a note this morning. "USD gains will be cemented if the bullish forecasts for today’s housing starts and building permits prove correct. Emerging markets have been bruised, with the BRL, MXN and ZAR among the leading fallers. No G10 currency makes it into the bottom five vs the USD this week, and without a central bank response to further curve steepening, both the EUR and GBP downside risk will continue to be tempered by portfolio outflows from EM."