What you need to know before the open – 20/01
European bourses are set to open lower this morning after a weak finish to last week and disappointing GDP numbers from China. It's set to be a quiet day when it comes to economic data, too:
Morning all. #FTSE called flat to small off today. US Holiday so could be a quiet one.
— FuturesTechs (@FuturesTechs) January 20, 2014
Chinese fourth quarter GDP slowed from 7.8 per cent to 7.7. per cent – the lowest it's been for 14 years.
Industrial production in December came in at 9.7 per cent, slowing from 10 per cent in November.
Deutsche Bank, which announced results late last night, is the latest in a string of weaker-end earnings that are dragging down market optimism. The bank was hit by a pre-tax loss of €1.2bn in the fourth quarter.
Data out this morning showed that producer prices in Germany rose 0.1 per cent in December after November’s 0.1 per cent fall.
The growth provides some good news for the Eurozone, as several periphery economies in the economic area continue to struggle.
Key events:
- Italy industrial orders for November at 9.00am.