Look ahead: UK Gfk consumer confidence; China retail sales; manufacturing and services PMI
UK consumer confidence swings into focus a day after the Bank of England kept rates steady at 5.25% and suggested that cuts are unlikely soon.
The consumer theme continues with China’s latest retail sales print. Plus, look out for manufacturing and services PMIs from the eurozone, the UK and the US.
(Partial video transcript)
UK Gfk consumer confidence figures
Angeline Ong: We start with the United Kingdom, where we've got Gfk consumer confidence figures, expectations for December -22. And all this will be really interesting given we've just had the Bank of England saying that it will hold interest rates at 5.25% as expected and suggested that cuts are unlikely soon.
China's industrial production and retail sales figures
Also watching out for China because we've got industrial production figures out of there. But probably what's more key are the retail sales figure. All these concerns that China is starting to have more and more data points pointing to deflation. So consumption, anything to do with retail sales and then consumer will be pounced on by traders. Also look out for fixed asset investment from the eurozone, the UK and the US.
Central banks' interest rate decisions unfold
Friday we finish off with a bang, with December manufacturing and services PMIs from all three of those places. European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged as expected on Thursday as well and signaled an early end to its last remaining bond purchase scheme. Now this comes as the Bank of England also stood pat on interest rates. Just looking at the dollar here because this has a central bank bearing as well. We had the Fed coming out saying that it was going to cut rates in 2024. And this, of course, weighed on the dollar.
This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Markets Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients. See full non-independent research disclaimer and quarterly summary.
Act on share opportunities today
Go long or short on thousands of international stocks with spread bets and CFDs.
- Get full exposure for a comparatively small deposit
- Trade on spreads from just 0.1%
- Get greater order book visibility with direct market access
See opportunity on a stock?
Try a risk-free trade in your demo account, and see whether you’re on to something.
- Log in to your demo
- Take your position
- See whether your hunch pays off
See opportunity on a stock?
Don’t miss your chance – upgrade to a live account to take advantage.
- Trade a huge range of popular stocks
- Analyse and deal seamlessly on fast, intuitive charts
- See and react to breaking news in-platform
See opportunity on a stock?
Don’t miss your chance. Log in to take advantage while conditions prevail.
Live prices on most popular markets
- Equities
- Indices
- Forex
- Commodities
Prices above are subject to our website terms and agreements. Prices are indicative only. All share prices are delayed by at least 15 minutes.
Prices above are subject to our website terms and agreements. Prices are indicative only. All shares prices are delayed by at least 15 mins.
