European markets are expected to open higher on Monday as investor sentiment is boosted by promises of a coordinated global monetary policy response to lessen the economic impact of the coronavirus epidemic.
The London FTSE index should open 140 more points to 6,703, the German DAX 159 more points to 12,015, the French CAC up 69 points to 5,369 and the Italian FTSE MIB index is up 117 points to 22,266, according to IG.
There is hope that central banks could introduce stimulus measures to lessen the impact of the epidemic on the global economy. These occur amid a sharp increase in coronavirus cases outside of China, including the United States and Europe.
In total, there are now more than 87,000 cases of confirmed viruses worldwide and more than 3,000 deaths. The United States reported its second death from the virus and New York reported its first case on Sunday.
Global stock markets suffered heavy losses last week, experiencing the worst declines since the 2008 financial crisis, but looked set to try to rebound this week after these lows. There will be a pause to reflect as the latest Chinese manufacturing data for February, however, has arrived much worse than expected. A private survey released Monday showed that factory activity in China fell to a record low in February.
The data came after the National Bureau of Statistics released figures on Saturday showing that the official purchasing index (PMI) fell to 35.7 in February – the lowest level on record, according to Reuters – compared at a reading of 50.0 in January. . The level of 50 points in PMI readings separates growth from contraction.
There is growing speculation that central banks could step in to stimulate the economy to mitigate the financial impact of the coronavirus. On Friday, the President of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, said that the coronavirus “poses progressive risks to economic activity” and that the Fed “would use our tools and act appropriately to support the economy”.
In other news, the UK and the EU are expected to begin their first round of post-Brexit trade talks on Monday. EU ministers have said they are ready to offer a “substantial, ambitious and far-reaching partnership” to the United Kingdom, while the London government has said “that a comprehensive free trade agreement should be at the heart “in the upcoming negotiations.
Data released in Europe on Monday includes a series of manufacturing PMIs for February.
– Eustace Huang of CNBC contributed to the reporting on this story.
