Germany

Rae Wee gives us a look at what the European and global markets will be like tomorrow. Politics is never quiet. In the last few days, British Deputy PM Angela Rayner, and Japanese Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba resigned. French lawmakers voted Francois Bayrou out of office. The party of Argentinean President Javier Milei suffered a crushing defeat. And Indonesia replaced its longtime finance minister. Investors will be watching to see who President Emmanuel Macron appoints France's 5th Prime Minister in less than 2 years. Macron has not yet called a snap election. He appears to be set on appointing a...

Wayne Cole gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. The market has had a difficult start to the month of September, with Wall Street away on vacation and much of Asia down. S&P futures are flat during what is usually a poor month. European share futures are hardly moving, but China is still well supported by liquidity seeking a home in the low-yielding world. Chinese blue-chip stocks rose more than 10% in the last month. This was aided by reports that Beijing is pushing companies to create a domestic alternative to Nvidia AI...

Gregor Stuart Hunter gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. Tech stocks have fallen after Nvidia announced earnings that would make any CEO kill for. The chip designer, a leader in AI, beat analysts' expectations and forecast revenue for Q3 that was higher than Wall Street predictions. A miss on data center revenue and concerns over China forecasts caused its shares to fall more than 3% after-hours. Kyle Rodda is a senior market analyst for Capital.com. He said that Nvidia's results were not perfect, but they had to be free of flaws. The...

Ankur Banerjee gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets The markets have chosen to temporarily ignore the Trump v Fed drama, and instead focus on the political crisis in France. This has led to a steep selloff of stocks and bonds for the second largest economy in the eurozone. The gamble taken by Francois Bayrou, French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou to gain support for his unpopular plan of debt reduction has backfired Tuesday, causing the country's political and financial instability to worsen. FRENCH WORRIES Investors are keeping an eye on France’s blue-chip CAC40,...

The dollar and longer-dated U.S. Treasury rates fell on Tuesday, as President Donald Trump’s decision to fire a Federal Reserve Governor fueled fears about the Fed’s independence. Wall Street stocks were relatively unchanged. Trump announced on Monday that he had fired Fed Governor Lisa Cook due to allegations of improper mortgage borrowing. Cook stated that Trump does not have the authority to dismiss her as a central banker and that she will not resign. Her term was set to expire in 2038. Trump's unprecedented move could result in a long-lasting legal battle, which risks setting new norms regarding the independence...

Wayne Cole gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. Asian markets have managed to cheer Jerome Powell’s apparent dovishness last week. The Nikkei is up, and Chinese stocks are continuing their recent rally. The blue-chip index in China has risen almost 10% this month, reaching new heights not seen since mid-2022. This is despite the fact that domestic demand remains weak and companies lack any pricing power. The power of momentum is indisputable. Why do shares go up? People are buying shares. Why do they buy? They're going up. After Friday's euphoria the...

As the deadline for U.S. president Donald Trump to reach a trade deal looms next week, most Asian equity markets struggled and European stocks appeared set to open lower, despite Wall Street's overnight record highs. As traders weighed the implications of Trump's expected signing of a sweeping spending bill later that day, the dollar lost some of its gains from Thursday. U.S. S&P futures dipped by 0.3% after the cash index had risen overnight by 0.8% to a new closing high. Wall Street will be closed for Independence Day on Friday. The price of STOXX futures in Europe fell by...

As President Donald Trump's trade deadline looms next week, most Asian equity markets struggled Friday, despite overnight record highs on Wall Street. As traders weighed the implications of Trump's sweeping spending bill, the dollar lost some of its gains from Thursday. Japan's Nikkei gained 0.3% at 0152 GMT, after trading in the early hours saw gains and losses. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.3% while mainland Chinese blue-chips edged lower. Taiwan's equity index lost its early gains and fell by 0.2%. South Korea's KOSPI fell more than 1%. The U.S. S&P futures index dipped by 0.2% after the cash index...

The dollar rose after the U.S. payrolls data was stronger than expected, which indicated that the labor market might not be degrading as rapidly. The Labor Department Nonfarm payrolls increased 147,000 jobs in June, after a 144,000 increase in May that was revised upwards. This is well above the 110,000 estimates of economists polled. Markets dialed Back expectations According to LSEG, the Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates this year in response to the new data. The nearly 25% chance of a rate cut has all but disappeared, and expectations for a reduction in September are now down to...

Gold Reserve's $7.38bn bid was selected by a U.S. court as the winning bid. Preliminary winner After intense competition, Citgo Petroleum (owned by Venezuela) held an auction for its parent company. Robert Pincus is the court officer who oversees this auction. He made his recommendation Wednesday, after evaluating five bids submitted during the "topping period" of the bidding rounds, which was completed at the end of June. The auction is a result of a case Crystallex, a Canadian miner, filed in Delaware eight years ago against Venezuela. Citgo Holding's parent company, PDV Holding was found liable by the federal court...

The dollar and global shares both fell for the ninth consecutive session on Tuesday as investors analyzed a torrent of U.S. data and Jerome Powell's comments to determine the timing of interest rate cuts. Powell said that he couldn't say whether July was too soon for a rate reduction, but "it will depend on the data and we go meeting by meeting". According to CME's FedWatch Tool, market expectations for a cut in July have increased to 21,2% from 18,6% the previous session. The Dow Jones advanced on Wall Street but the S&P 500, Nasdaq and Nasdaq retreated to record...

On Monday, global stocks rose on the hope that U.S. Trade Negotiations with Key Partners would continue to advance. Meanwhile, the dollar fell and was on course for its worst performance in more than 50 years during the first half. Canada has halted the digital services tax that was to be imposed on U.S. tech firms, just hours before its scheduled implementation. This is part of an effort to move forward with stalled negotiations between Washington and Ottawa. Mark Carney, the Canadian Prime Minister, and Donald Trump, President of the United States will try to reach a trade agreement by...

Vacuumschmelze, one of only a few rare earth magnet manufacturers outside China, is seeking Washington's help to expand production at a new U.S. facility. This contrasts with the tepid support for similar plans in Europe. It is imperative that the West establishes its own supply of permanent magnets, as China produces 90% of these products, which are vital to defence, electric vehicles, and wind turbines. VAC CEO Erik Eschen stated that the U.S. is pushing harder than Europe for a domestic rare-earths sector. This can be seen by its magnet factory in South Carolina, which aims to open before the...

According to the VDMA sector group, German engineering companies are expecting production to only recover slightly next year after the pounding that high costs and global uncertainty, as well as a trade conflict, will have on the level this year. VDMA says that production will only grow by 1.0% by 2026 if the major reforms promised to the German government this autumn are actually implemented. The VDMA warned that there were "considerable risks" including an intensification of the trade conflict, a rise in government debt, and punitive duties on steel and aluminum. These factors prompted the VDMA's 2025 outlook to...

SMG Swiss Marketplace Group, an online platform for real estate and auto sales, announced on Tuesday its intention to float. This is a sign that the European IPO market has been reviving after a long period of stagnation. TX Group owns 30.7% of SMG. TX Group stated that the timing of its planned IPO is dependent on market conditions. Further information will be provided in due time. The company did not specify how many shares will be offered in the floatation, but stated that it has no intention of selling any of its stock. TX Group said that it was...

The only British aluminium coil factory has invested millions to reduce its carbon footprint, save energy and protect itself from some the highest electricity prices in the world. When Bridgnorth Aluminium falls below the threshold for government subsidies that help businesses pay their bills, they ramp up everything to make sure they don't miss out. Our finance guy told us at the end the year that it was okay to keep the lights on more. "It's kind of strange and counterproductive," Adrian Musgrave said, head of sales for Bridgnorth Aluminium. The paradoxical situation is caused by the high electricity prices...

Thyssenkrupp Nucera, a German supplier of hydrogen equipment, reported an unexpected loss for the third quarter on Wednesday. The company continues to experience project delays in a weak market for hydrogen. Clean-tech companies are worried about what U.S. president Donald Trump's plans for taxation and spending will mean for this industry. They fear that his tax and expenditure plans will stifle the U.S. green hydrogen industry because they will remove crucial tax credits. Thyssenkrupp reported a net profit of 1 million euros, below the analysts' poll conducted by Vara-research. This compares to a 7-million euro profit during the same period...

BMW Germany maintained its full-year forecast on Thursday, despite U.S. Tariffs and a drop in quarterly earnings of a third. It argued that its large manufacturing footprint in the country gave it an advantage over its rivals. Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz, on the other hand, have reduced their outlooks. The European automakers have yet to digest a new 15% auto tariff that was agreed upon between the European Union (EU) and President Donald Trump. Although this is lower than the existing rate of 27,5%, it still represents a significant obstacle for their export-focused business. BMW, which has its largest plant in...

Heidelberg Materials, the second largest cement manufacturer in the world, announced a second-quarter operating income that was better than expected on Thursday. The company cited price adjustments and strict management of costs. The company's poll predicted that the group's RCO would be 1.03 billion euro, but it actually rose to 1.05 billion. Dominik von Achten, CEO of Dominik von Achten, said that our cost-management system has been particularly effective during the second quarter. The company has also confirmed that its full-year RCO forecast is between 3,25 billion and 3,55 billion euros. This is based on the assumption that the demand...

Holcim announced better than expected recurring operating profits during its second-quarter results on Thursday. This was the first time the building materials manufacturer has reported its North American operations separately. The Swiss manufacturer of cement and roofing products posted an operating profit of 955 millions Swiss Francs ($1.17billion) in the three-month period ending June. The 944 million francs figure from a year ago was up 1.2%, beating consensus expectations of 929 million. Sales dropped 3.8%, to 4,18 billion Swiss francs. This was slightly lower than forecasts of 4,19 billion Swiss francs. The decrease was due to the strength of the...

Here are some company news and stories that could impact the markets in France and Benelux or even individual stocks. Airbus Airbus, the European planemaker, posted a second-quarter profit that was higher than expected, thanks to its helicopter and defence units. It also maintained its full-year predictions as it strives to catch up with delayed jetliner delivery. BIC French stationery BIC reported Q2 revenues of 598 millions euros, and is expecting a full-year growth of 0-3%. The company's H1 adjusted EBIT for 2025 was 147 millions euros with a 13.7% margin. BIC's adjusted EBIT margin is expected to be 15.0%...

Mercedes-Benz cut its forecasts for annual sales and profit margins on Wednesday. The company cited a $420 million hit from U.S. Tariffs in the second-quarter. The German luxury automaker expects to achieve a profit margin between 4% and 6% in its car business for this year, and a group revenue that is "significantly lower" than the levels of 2024, for both its cars and vans. In February, before the U.S. Tariff Changes, the company said that they expected the profit margin of its car division this year to be 6-8%, after 2024 earnings had fallen 30%, with a 40% drop...

Moeve, the second largest oil refiner in Spain, which was formerly called Cepsa said Monday that its net profit had fallen 19% during the first half of this year, mostly due to an impact from a massive blackout of power in April in Spain, Portugal and other countries. The company's net profit dropped to 324 millions euros ($378.92 million), and earnings before interest taxes, amortization, and depreciation (EBITDA) fell by 33% compared to a year earlier to 733.92 million euros. The company said that the decline in core profit was primarily due to the costs of stopping and restarting their...

European governments and businesses reacted on Monday with relief and concern to the framework deal reached with U.S. president Donald Trump. They acknowledged that it was an unbalanced agreement, but one which avoided a more serious trade war. The U.S. will impose an import tariff of 15% on the majority of EU goods, which is half the rate threatened, but more than the Europeans had hoped. The deal was not entirely clear at the time. As we wait for the full details of the EU-U.S. trade agreement, one thing is clear: this is a moment of relief but not celebration,"...