The Ibex 35 moderates losses to 0.2% at midday and remains above 10,100 points

MADRID, 8 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Ibex 35 softened the losses to 0.2% at midday, reaching 10,144.4 points, thanks to the advance of banking stocks - to the detriment of Grifols, real estate and energy, which fell more than 2% - in one day marked by the publication of macroeconomic data in the eurozone.

The Spanish selective started downwards and, provisionally, hit an intraday minimum at 10,079.4 integers one hour after the opening and immediately began a comeback trend.

This Monday it was learned that the economic sentiment indicator (ESI) of the eurozone rose in December to its highest levels since last May, while the data for the European Union as a whole reached its best reading since April 2023, with Italy and Spain as the large economies with the best evolution at the end of the year.

Specifically, the indicator for the eurozone rose in December to 96.4 points from 94 in November, its best reading since May 2023, while that of the EU reached 95.6 from 93.8 points in November , at maximums since April.

In the case of the Spanish economy, the ESI reading for December improved to 101.4 points from 99 in November, thus achieving its best result since August of last year. This increased confidence in the economy was driven by greater optimism seen in industry, services and consumers, while confidence worsened in retail and construction.

For its part, eurozone retail sales in November fell 1.1% year-on-year, less than expected, while monthly forecasts were met with a decline of 0.3%.

Banca March experts have assessed this morning through a report that the market continues to assign a high probability to a reduction in official rates within the first half of the year, something that, from their point of view, is unlikely since inflation is will normalize more slowly than in 2023; In addition, job creation data in the United States continues to show a solid labor market at the end of 2023, which postpones the need for a prompt lowering of interest rates.

Also in the macroeconomic field this week, on Thursday it will be the turn of inflation in the United States and, on Friday, inflation in China, as well as its trade balance.

Likewise, on Friday the data on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) of Spain, industrial prices of the United States and the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the United Kingdom will also be published.

Under the business umbrella, investors will be awaiting the start of the international earnings season this week, as the fourth quarter 2023 accounts of JPMorgan, Bank of America, Blackrock, Wells Fargo, Citi and BNY Mellon will be released. among others.

Thus, in the middle section of the negotiation, the biggest declines within the Ibex 35 were recorded by Grifols (-3%), Colonial (-2.45%), Merlin Properties (-1.9%), Solaria (-1, 78%), Acciona Energía (-1.6%), Acciona (-1.54%) and Repsol (-1.5%); while among the 'green' lanterns stood out Unicaja (1.55%), Banco Sabadell (1.41%), Caixabank (1.35%), Bankinter (1.21%), Sacyr (1%) and Mapfre ( 0.8%).

The main European stock markets also registered corrections this afternoon: Frankfurt lost 0.02%; Paris, 0.19%; Milan, 0.34%; and London, 0.44%.

At the same time, the price of a barrel of Brent quality oil, a reference for the Old Continent, stood at 76.6 dollars, 2.76% less, while Texas fell 2.95%, to 71 .6 dollars.

In the currency market, the price of the euro against the dollar remained unchanged at 1.09944 'greenbacks', while in the debt market, the interest required on the 10-year bond rose three basis points, to 3.176%, with the risk premium (the differential with the German bond) at 99.5 points.