LIVE MARKETS-Midday snapshot: scaling session highs
* European shares rise
* STOXX hits fresh 6-week high
* Good earnings provide support
* Amazon lifts U.S. futures ahead of GDP data
July 27 (Reuters) - Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of European equity markets
brought to you by Reuters stocks reporters and anchored today by Danilo Masoni. Reach him on
Messenger to share your thoughts on market moves: danilo.masoni.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net
MIDDAY SNAPSHOT: SCALING SESSION HIGHS (1145 GMT)
We're halfway through Friday's session and the STOXX is at a session high as telecoms speed
ahead.
Well-received earnings updates from Proximus (LSE: 0DPU.L - news) and BT are helping boost
telcos, while cyclicals such as banks and miners are continuing to be lifted by the feel-good
factor from easing trade tensions.
Over in the U.S., stocks futures are slightly higher as investors focus on Amazon and
Twitter (Frankfurt: A1W6XZ - news) 's results, ahead of a potentially strong U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) data.
Here's your snapshot:
(Kit Rees)
*****
TRADE WARS. WHAT TO WATCH NEXT? (1035 GMT)
Trade fears are ebbing today but remain atop investors' minds.
A team of economists at Morgan Stanley (Xetra: 885836 - news) has taken a deep dive into trade war scenarios, their
possible impact on the global economy and supply chains, and indicate what actions investors
need to track for any signs of an escalation.
Here's your timeline and as you can see it looks that markets may have to brace for some
turbulence starting from mid August.
And here are their 4 scenarios, from status quo to a full-blow escalation, and the impact on
GDP:
(Danilo Masoni)
*****
STOXX SET FOR FOURTH WEEK OF GAINS (0740 GMT)
Solid earnings updates in sectors ranging from banks to capital goods are helping European
shares build slightly on the gains made in the previous session, with the STOXX 600 rising 0.2
percent at fresh six-week highs in early deals and set for its fourth straight week of gains.
Here's your snapshot with the STOXX's weekly moves so far in 2018.
Among the top gainers are Reckitt Benckiser (Xetra: A0M1W6 - news) , Carrefour (LSE: 0NPH.L - news) , Saint Gobain (LSE: 490580.L - news) , BT, Vinci (LSE: 0NQM.L - news) and BBVA (LSE: 931474.L - news) ,
all rising following well-received results.
(Danilo Masoni)
****
WHAT WE'RE WATCHING BEFORE THE OPEN (0647 GMT)
European shares are set to stabilise at the six week highs reached in the previous session
after a US-EU trade truce diminished the prospect of US tariffs on European autos, with a number
of solid earnings updates likely to provide fresh support today. Futures on main country indexes
were trading between flat and a rise of 0.3 percent.
Deutsche Bank (IOB: 0H7D.IL - news) strategists highlight that with 40 percent of market cap having reported so
far, European second-quarter EPS growth has accelerated to 6 percent from 0 percent in the
first. They say this is a good results, given the sharp deterioration in euro area growth
momentum seen in the period.
The auto sector could find some more relief after French car maker Renault (LSE: 0NQF.L - news) achieved record
profitability in the first half as emerging-market sales surged, more than offsetting
exchange-rate challenges. Investors may also take some comfort from Amazon's strong results
following the grim update from Facebook (NasdaqGS: FB - news) which hit hard the Nasdaq (Frankfurt: 813516 - news) overnight. In the UK, eyes
will be on BP after the oil group agreed to buy U.S. shale oil and gas assets from global miner
BHP Billiton (NYSE: BBL - news) for $10.5 billion.
For other stock movers check out the previous post.
(Danilo Masoni)
****
HEADLINE ROUNDUP: EARNINGS, EARNINGS, EARNINGS (0559 GMT)
Today's early morning headlines are all about company updates and the list is quite long:
Renault lifts margins on record first-half sales
Danone Q2 sales growth slows as Morocco boycott weighs
LafargeHolcim H1 profit drops 43 pct as restructuring charges bite
French group Vinci keeps upbeat outlook as H1 profit rises
Axel Springer (Swiss: SPR.SW - news) confirms guidance as Business Insider turns profit
France's Engie (LSE: 0LD0.L - news) confirms 2018 guidance despite Belgian nuclear outages
Dutch lighting maker Signify cuts 2018 sales outlook
French group Vinci keeps upbeat outlook as H1 profit rises
Spain's BBVA posts 18.3 pct rise in Q2 net profit y/y
Spain's Caixabank Q2 net profit up 36 pct on lower provisions
Spain's Sabadell books Q2 net loss after TSB's IT-failure costs
BASF operating profit up 5 pct on specialty chems, oil division
Swiss bank Vontobel raises mid-term goals as assets under management rise to record
Blackstone (NYSE: BX - news) is said to buy Altice Towers in Dominican Republic - Bloomberg
BP pays $10.5 bln for BHP shale assets to beef up U.S. business
Fiat Chrysler says it did not know about Marchionne's illness
Kering (LSE: 0IIH.L - news) rides out China fears with Gucci growth
Luxury group Kering says it has finished selling off brands
Cosmetics giant L'Oreal leans on luxury arm as profits rise
Retailer Carrefour H1 operating profit rises though France lags
French group St Gobain to step up sales and acquisitions as H1 profits rise
Amazon earnings skyrocket on cloud computing, advertising
Benetton family to sell part of Cellnex stake - sources
Market headlines:
> Asian shares post modest gains as trade fears keep investors cautious
> Facebook sends Nasdaq tumbling, but trade optimism boosts Dow
> Nikkei up slightly; focus on global trade, BOJ meeting
> Yields rise as traders await Friday's GDP report
> Dollar steadies after rally, U.S. GDP data awaited
> Gold inches up as dollar eases ahead of U.S. GDP data
> Copper edges higher, heads for first weekly jump in seven
> Copper edges higher, heads for first weekly jump in seven
(Danilo Masoni)
*****
MORNING CALL: EUROPEAN SHARES SEEN HIGHER (0524 GMT)
European shares are set to open higher, extending gains seen in the previous session when
hopes of a breakthrough in U.S.-EU trade talks and a weaker euro pushed the STOXX 60 at 6-week
highs at the close.
Eyes today are on a flurry of earnings updates and on GDP data out of the U.S. later in the
session. Here are your opening calls, courtesy of CMC Markets (LSE: CMCX.L - news) :
FTSE100 is expected to open 21 points higher at 7,684
DAX is expected to open 31 points higher at 12,840
CAC40 is expected to open unchanged at 5,480
Over in Asia, stocks struggled to gain traction, following a mixed Wall Street finish and as
the worsening Sino (Dusseldorf: 1205802.DU - news) -U.S. trade dispute kept investors in the region cautious, despite signs of
rapprochement between the United States and Europe.
(Danilo Masoni)
*****