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European Shares Seen Lower After China Data

markets 111714 16sep19

European stocks are likely to open lower on Monday amid growth worries after data showed growth in industrial output from Chinese factories fell to a fresh low in August amid the ongoing trade war between Beijing and Washington.

Industrial output growth unexpectedly weakened to 4.4 percent in August from the same period a year earlier, the slowest pace since February 2002 and down from 4.8 percent in July.

Retail sales and investment figures also disappointed amid rising trade pressure and softening domestic demand.

Traders will also keep a close eye on oil price movements after a strike on a Saudi Arabian oil facility removed about 5 percent of global supplies, an attack the U.S. has blamed on Iran.

Global benchmark Brent Crude futures surged nearly 10 percent and U.S. crude futures were up nearly 9 percent following an attack on Saudi Arabia's biggest oil processing facility.

Asian markets are trading mixed as a cut in the reserve requirement ratio for banks by the People's Bank of China went into effect. Safe-haven assets such as gold and the Japanese yen rose amid heightened geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

U.S. stocks ended mixed on Friday and the dollar slipped as Treasury yields jumped to six-week highs on the back of easing trade tensions and upbeat economic data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up 0.1 percent while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.2 percent and the S&P 500 edged down marginally.

European markets ended Friday's session higher, a day after the ECB announced a new quantitative easing program in a bid to reinvigorate the ailing euro zone economy.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 advanced 0.3 percent. The German DAX rose half a percent, France's CAC 40 index edged up 0.2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 0.3 percent.

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Market Analysis

All eyes were on the U.S. Federal Reserve this week as the bank announced its latest policy decision. Find out the signals given out by Chair Jerome Powell regarding the future path of interest rates. Some key data on the U.S. private sector economy were also released. Other main news included the flash estimates of first quarter GDP from Eurozone. Elsewhere, the Paris-based think tank OECD released its latest round of macroeconomic projections for the global economy.

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