Weak Data from the US is Unsettling

February 15, 2014

Published in Die Presse
(Austria) on 14 February 2014
by Die Presse (link to original link to original)

Translated from by Sean Thacker. Edited by Laurence Bouvard.

Stock exchanges barely made any headway on Thursday.

Stock markets worldwide seem to have left adjustments behind them; not much excitement could be felt on Thursday. In the afternoon most European indexes were either in the red or oscillating around a flatline, and the U.S. indexes started in the red.

Disappointing U.S. job market numbers were to blame for the disillusionment. January retail sales numbers came out surprisingly low. Retailers made about 0.4 percent less money than in the previous month, according the U.S. Department of Commerce. Economies had expected stagnating sales. Excluding the auto industry, profits remained at the previous month’s levels. Additionally, within the past week, more people applied for unemployment assistance than expected.

Among the biggest losers were bank shares. But in Vienna the value of a share in Mayr-Melnhof, a manufacturer of folding boxes, went up: The dividend for the 2013 fiscal year went up 15 cents to €2.40 plus an additional special dividend of another €2.40 per stock certificate.

In contrast, heavyweights like Verbund, Voestalpine and Raiffeisen Bank International lost a lot of ground.

Schwache Daten aus den USA verunsichern

Donnerstags kamen die Börsen kaum vom Fleck.

Die weltweiten Aktienmärkte scheinen die Korrektur zwar hinter sich gelassen haben, von Euphorie war am Donnerstag aber wenig zu spüren. Die meisten europäischen Indizes lagen am Nachmittag im Minus oder pendelten um die Nulllinie, auch die US-Indizes starteten mit roten Vorzeichen.

Schuld für die Ernüchterung waren enttäuschende Zahlen vom US-Arbeitsmarkt: Die Einzelhandelsumsätze in den USA waren im Jänner überraschend niedrig ausgefallen. Die Händler hatten um 0,4 Prozent weniger in den Kassen als im Vormonat, wie das US-Handelsministerium mitteilte. Ökonomen hatten mit stagnierenden Umsätzen gerechnet. Klammert man den Autosektor aus, verharrten die Einnahmen auf dem Vormonatsniveau. Zudem hatten in der vergangenen Woche mehr Menschen Erstanträge auf Arbeitslosenhilfe gestellt als erwartet.

Zu den größten Verlierern zählten Bankwerte. Doch konnte in Wien die Aktie des Faltschachtelherstellers Mayr-Melnhof zulegen: Die Ausschüttung für das abgelaufene Geschäftsjahr 2013 soll um 15 Cent auf 2,40 Euro angehoben werden. Hinzu kommt eine Sonderausschüttung von weiteren 2,40 Euro je Anteilschein.

Dagegen mussten Schwergewichte wie Verbund, Voestalpine und Raiffeisen Bank International kräftig Federn lassen.

This post appeared on the front page as a direct link to the original article with the above link .

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