The value of stocks declined in Asia and Europe today after China’s exports witnessed the lowest fall since the beginning of the pandemic.
Shortly following Italy’s approval of a 40% “windfall tax” on bank profits this year to help mortgage holders and cut taxes today, Europe’s region-wide Stoxx Europe 600 index fell 0.2% in the first hour of trading. Italian lender Intesa Sanpaolo was among the top decliners, down 6.9%, while UniCredit fell 5.7%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dropped 1.7%, while China’s benchmark CSI 300 was down 0.3%.
The moves came after official data showed China’s exports declined 14.5% year on year in July, the most since February 2020. The trade figures raise worries about sluggish economic growth in the third quarter. It added that weakening signs of activities in construction, manufacturing and services, along with foreign direct investment and industrial profits, are prompting policymakers to take action by implementing fresh stimulus measures.
China’s inflation figures – slated to be published tomorrow – are expected to register 0.4% deflation in July after prices stagnated in the previous month.
This will be followed by the announcement of the consumer price index on August 10 from the US, which has been struggling to “cool” prices. High inflation prompted the Federal Reserve to take interest rates to their highest level in 22 years.
Contracts tracking Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 lost 0.4%, while those tracking the tech-focused Nasdaq 100 declined 0.5% ahead of the New York open.
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