Summary:
- US500 retests 200 day SMA; Tesla plunges
- UK services PMI recovers but less than expected
- Eurozone CPI slows further
- ISM non-manufacturing PMI misses forecasts; Gold attempts to bounce
A sell-off that began shortly after last night’s Fed decision has gathered momentum today with the US500 falling back to test its 200 day SMA. the market has fallen more than 60 points in the last 24 hours and dropped back below the 2600 level. Looking at individual stocks, Tesla is in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons today after the automaker released its latest results, with shares lower by around 7% at the time of writing.
The third UK data point in consecutive days has shown an improvement in the reading for the services sector, although the increase was smaller than analysts had forecast. The print of 52.8 represents a decent rise on the 51.7 seen last time out, but against upbeat expectations of a 53.5 figure it is a tad soft. Recent weeks have seen a series of negative economic releases for the pound and the currency remains under pressure today, falling to a new low against the USD.
Inflation in the Eurozone continues to show little sign of returning to target anytime soon with the latest figures revealing another drop. The CPI flash estimate for April came in lower at 1.2% Y/Y against consensus forecasts for a 1.3% Y/Y reading. The prior print was also subject to a downwards revision and now stands at 1.3% after previously being 1.4%.
The latest batch of data from the US has shown some mixed results, with the overall feeling one of slight disappointment. Of the three releases at 3PM (BST) the most important was the ISM non-manufacturing PMI which missed a forecast for 58.1 in coming in at 56.8, below the 58.8 seen previously.