KBC Market Research Desk
KBC Bank
European shares post further gains today, supported by upbeat corporate earnings results. Most indices trade up to 0.50% higher. In the US, equities opened mixed in the absence of important data or other news items.
Pro‐Russian separatists shot down two Ukrainian fighter jets today close to where the Malaysia Airlines flight crashed last week, the Ukrainian Defence Ministry said. The alleged shoot‐down would mark the first time a plane has been brought down over Ukraine since the crash.
According to the advance estimate, European Commission’s consumer confidence weakened for a second straight month in July. Consumer confidence dropped from ‐7.5 to ‐8.4, while a stabilization was expected.
The Bank of Spain said today that GDP had probably grown by 0.5% Q/Q in the second quarter, led by consumption and business investments. The central bank upgraded its growth forecast for this year to 1.3%, from 1.2% previously, before growth will pick up to 2% in 2015.
The ECB announced today that the EU Council formally approved the accession of Lithuania to the euro area on January 2015 and determined the euro conversion rate of the litas at 3.45280 to 1.
This non-exhaustive information is based on short-term forecasts for expected developments on the financial markets. KBC Bank cannot guarantee that these forecasts will materialize and cannot be held liable in any way for direct or consequential loss arising from any use of this document or its content. The document is not intended as personalized investment advice and does not constitute a recommendation to buy, sell or hold investments described herein. Although information has been obtained from and is based upon sources KBC believes to be reliable, KBC does not guarantee the accuracy of this information, which may be incomplete or condensed. All opinions and estimates constitute a KBC judgment as of the data of the report and are subject to change without notice.
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