Takeaway: Despite ECB intervention, economic policy uncertainty remains high into 2013, which should weigh on markets.

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Asset Class Performance:

  • Equities:  The STOXX Europe 600 closed down -0.8% week-over-week vs +0.6% last week. Bottom performers: Luxembourg -1.8%; Switzerland -1.8%; Spain -1.6%; Finland -1.6%; Belgium -1.4%; Portugal -1.2%; France -1.2%; Netherlands -0.9%.  Top performers:  Greece +7.6%; Romania +5.4%; Turkey +2.5%; Hungary +2.1%; Latvia +1.6%; Estonia +1.5%. [Other: UK -0.6%; Germany -0.5%].
  • FX:  The EUR/USD is up +0.23% week-over-week vs +0.11% last week.  W/W Divergences:  RUB/EUR +1.38%; SEK/EUR +0.63%; DKK/EUR +0.25%; CHF/EUR +0.21%; GBP/EUR -0.11%; NOK/EUR -0.23%; HUF/EUR -0.24%; ISK/EUR -1.35%.
  • Fixed Income:  The 10YR yields for sovereigns were largely flat week-on-week.

Weekly European Monitor: Into Year-End - 66 10yr yield

EUR/USD: Our TRADE range is $1.31 – 1.33

  • Our call - the EUR/USD will trade within our quantitative levels and reflect much of the daily headline risk (from Spain, Greece, and Italy in particular), however ECB President Mario Draghi’s September announcement that “the ECB is ready to do whatever it takes to preserve the euro” and the resolve of Eurocrats to maintain the Union will prevent levels falling anywhere near parity.
  • We expect a long road towards a fiscal union as states will be reluctant to give their sovereignty up to an external entity, which should limit the cross’ upside.
  • The cross could weaken alongside the ECB showing some willingness to cut the benchmark interest rate.

Weekly European Monitor: Into Year-End - 66 eur usd

Into Year-End:

As we conclude 2012 we reiterate the recent shift in our research call from #SlowingGrowth to #StabilizingGrowth.” While the fundamental data we track is far from showing a resounding inflection from a weak to negative trend, we are on the margin seeing slight improvement.  

We expect 2013 across much of Europe to be a continuation of 2012 – that is a struggle to form a fiscal union (despite marginal improvement in tying a bow around a modified “Banking Union”) and continued weak sovereign and banking pockets (in particular in Spain, Italy, Portugal, and France) that will influence the entire region from growth and stock market perspectives. 

We remain fully aware that “risk” has largely abated across Europe (especially the periphery) since the summer and particularly following Mario Draghi’s September ECB statement (9/6) to buy “unlimited” sovereign debt via the OMT program. Of note is the influence central banks can have on market performance. Here, Germany is worth a highlight, with the DAX climbing 29% YTD and 6% since the speech.

However, Europe’s issues are far from in the clear. We believe that Europe in 2013 will have to continue to be monitored on a day-by-day basis as the wild cards of government intervention remain high coupled with the tenuous nature of the union of uneven states bound currently only under monetary policy.

A look at the European Economic Policy Uncertainty Index from www.policyuncertainty.com tells quite a story of just how high the level of economic policy uncertainty still is in Europe despite the first European bailout (of Greece) way back in May 2009 and all the interventions since. We think this level of uncertainty should weigh on markets in 2013.

Weekly European Monitor: Into Year-End - 66. uncertainty

The European Week Ahead:

Monday:  Greece Oct. Retail Sales

 

Wednesday:  Eurozone Dec. PMI Manufacturing – Final; Germany Dec. PMI Manufacturing - Final; CPI – Preliminary; UK Dec. House Prices (Jan. 2-5); PMI Manufacturing; France Dec. PMI Manufacturing - Final; Spain Dec. CPI - Preliminary; PMI Manufacturing; Italy Dec. New Car Registrations; Budget Balance; PMI Manufacturing; Greece Manufacturing PMI

Thursday: Eurozone Nov. M3; Germany Dec. Unemployment; UK Dec. PMI Construction; Nov. Net Consumer Credit; Net Lending Sec. on Dwellings; Mortgage Approvals; M4 Money Supply; Spain Dec. Unemployment

Friday: Eurozone Dec. PMI Services and Composite - Final; CPI Estimate; Germany Dec. PMI Services – Final; UK Dec. Official Reserves; PMI Services; France Dec. PMI Services – Final; Spain Dec. PMI Services; Italy Dec. CPI - Preliminary; PMI Services

Call Outs:

Italy – Monti say he will not run in the Feb. 24-25 election but he’s available to lead a coalition committed to his reforms.

Deficits - El Pais said the European Commission will propose giving Spain, France and several other Eurozone states more time to cut their public deficits below the target limit of 3% of GDP. The report cited senior Spanish and EU sources that said France could get an extra year, while Spain would be given one or two more years beyond that date. It added that the Commission has agreed on a new Spanish deficit path of 7% of GDP this year and 6% in 2013, compared to current targets of 6.3% for this year and 4.5% for 2013.

Portugal - A report by the European Commission says weaker-than-expected economic growth and recent political setbacks mean Lisbon is at risk of missing even new, loosened deficit targets and must find an additional €4B in cuts in time for its next bailout review, scheduled for mid-February. The article added that although Portugal's bailout program runs through to the middle of 2014, it faces its most critical test in September when it must repay €5.8B in sovereign bonds without help from bailout lenders, which have already distributed €64B to Lisbon, or more than 80% of the total cash in the program.

Spain - Lloyds Banking Group said while Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands and Belgium are forecast to lower the amount of debt they sell in 2013, Spain probably will raise its issuance to €110B. Morgan Stanley also said Spain will need to sell €111B of bonds in 2013, compared with the Spanish Treasury's provisional estimate for gross issuance of €90.4B. Lloyds' forecast for 2013 bond sales exceeds that of Spain's because it assumes the nation will miss this year's deficit target.

Italy - Italy’s centrist politicians (centre-left Democrats, Mr. Berlusconi's centre-right People of Liberty and the anti-establishment Five Star Movement) rallying behind Monti’s offer to lead alliance into Feb elections

Italy - Pier Luigi Bersani, says he would be ready to cede more sovereign powers to Brussels over government spending - in exchange for greater freedom to boost key economic sectors. Bersani, whose Democratic party has a strong lead in opinion polls ahead of February's elections, said he is open to supporting an ambitious German plan for EU control over national budgets, while stressing that it is essential for Europe to take more aggressive steps to revive economic growth. He added that he wants more equity and attention to social cohesion, and intends to continue Mr. Monti's drive for a deeper mutualization of European debt through the issuance of Eurobonds.

Data Dump:

 

France Q3 Final GDP +0.1% Q/Q vs initial +0.2% and expectation +0.2%   [0.0% Y/Y vs initial +0.2% and expectation +0.1%]

France Consumer Spending -0.2% NOV Y/Y vs -0.3% OCT

France Consumer Confidence 86 DEC vs 84 NOV

France Producer Prices 1.9% NOV Y/Y vs 2.8% OCT

 

Italy Business Confidence 88.9 DEC vs 88.5 NOV

Italy Economic Sentiment 75.4 DEC vs 76.5 NOV

Italy PPI 2.2% NOV Y/Y vs 2.6% OCT

 

UK BBA Loans for House Purchases 33634 NOV vs 33128 OCT

UK Hometrack Housing Survey -0.1% DEC M/M vs -0.1% NOV = fall for a 6 months   [-0.3% DEC Y/Y vs -0.3% NOV]

 

Spain Mortgages on House -14.4% OCT Y/Y vs -32.2% September

Spain Retail Sales -7.8% NOV Y/Y vs -8.4% OCT

Austria PPI 0.4% NOV Y/Y vs 0.7% OCT

Netherlands Producer Confidence -5.7 DEC vs -7.0 NOV

Ireland Property Prices -5.7% NOV Y/Y vs -8.1% OCT

Switzerland UBS Consumption Indicator 1.23 NOV vs 1.30 OCT

Sweden Wages (non-manual workers) 2.7% OCT Y/Y vs 2.7% September

Sweden Retail Sales 0.9% NOV Y/Y vs 1.1% OCT

Finland Business Confidence -15 DEC vs -13 NOV

Finland Consumer Confidence 3.5 DEC vs 1.0 NOV

 

Russia Manufacturing PMI 50 DEC vs 52.2 NOV

Russia PMI Services 56.1 DEC vs 57.1 NOV

 

Czech Republic Business Confidence 1.6 DEC vs 0.3 NOV

Czech Republic Consumer and Business Confidence -3.9 DEC vs -5 NOV

Czech Republic Business Confidence -26 DEC vs -26.3 NOV

 

Slovakia Consumer Confidence -38.9 DEC vs -33.1 NOV

Slovakia Industrial Confidence -10 DEC vs -15.7 NOV

 

Slovenia CPI 2.7% DEC Y/Y vs 2.3% NOV

Slovenia Retail Trade -6.1% NOV Y/Y vs -6.7% OCT

Matthew Hedrick

Senior Analyst