SLOVENIA
Turnover in real estate down by about 40% in H1
Preliminary data by the Surveying and Mapping Authority indicate about a 40% drop in both the number of deals and turnover in real estate in the first half of 2020. Prices of used flats meanwhile continued to grow, by 3% compared to the second half of 2019, taking the average square metre price in the country above EUR 1,900 for the first time. (STA)
Slovenia's exports down 5.6% in first six months, imports drop by 10.3%
Slovenia's exports were down 4.2% year-on-year in June, amounting to EUR 2.68 billion, while imports decreased by 5.1% to EUR 2.56 billion. The export-import ratio was 104.7%. The decreases for the first half of the year were 5.6% and 10.3% respectively, shows data released by the Statistics Office on Friday. (STA)
INTERNATIONAL MARKETS
S&P 500 closes higher for a fourth day, now just 2% from its February record as Disney rallies; European stocks close higher after major earnings; Commerzbank up 5%; BELEX15 up 0.3%; Komercijana Banka reported 36% drop in net profit; Only 15% employers in Serbia accept increase of minimum wage
Stocks rose on Wednesday on the back of strong Disney earnings and coronavirus vaccine hopes as the broader market approached reached record levels set earlier this year. The S&P 500 advanced 0.6% to 3,327.77 and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.4% to 10,998.40. The Nasdaq briefly broke above 11,000 for the first time and posted a six-day winning streak. The S&P 500 closed higher for a fourth straight day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also posted a four-day winning streak, rallying 373.05 points, or 1.4%, to 27,201.52.
Disney earned 8 cents per share, while analysts expected a loss of 64 cents per share. Disney said it now has 100 million paid subscribers across its streaming services, which include Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+. Disney shares popped 8.8%.
Johnson & Johnson announced it struck a $1 billion deal with the U.S. government to manufacture 100 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine candidate if it proves successful. J&J shares rose 0.8%. Novavax shares jumped 10.4% after the company reported phase one vaccine trial results that showed a positive immune response among patients.
Airline stocks rose broadly after Senate Republicans said they supported an additional $25 billion in federal aid for the industry. United Airlines closed 4.5% higher and Delta advanced 3.1%. American Airlines jumped 9.5%.
European stocks closed higher on Wednesday as investors digested another round of major corporate earnings reports, but weaker-than-expected euro zone economic data capped gains. The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed up by 0.5%, paring earlier gains after July’s final euro zone PMI (purchasing managers’ index) reading came in at a modest 56.5, with the bloc’s dominant services sector showing a weaker rebound than expected.
Commerzbank posted a better-than-expected 21% dip in net profit to 220 million euros ($260.2 million) for the second quarter, and forecast a net loss for the full year fueled by increased loan loss provisions due to the coronavirus pandemic and the insolvency of Wirecard. Commerzbank shares climbed almost 5%.
BMW swung to a 666 million billion euro net loss before interest and taxes in the second quarter, down from a 2.2 billion euro operating profit for the same period last year. The German automaker also restated its warning that pretax profit for 2020 will be significantly below the levels seen in 2019. Shares fell over 3%.
Deutsche Post shares gained 2.5% after the package delivery giant beat expectations to record a 19% rise in second-quarter operating profit to 912 million euros and confirmed its full-year guidance. Dutch supermarket giant Ahold Delhaize reported a better-than-expected rise in sales and operating profit on the back of a surge in online sales during the pandemic, sending the stock 5% higher.
BELEX15 added 0.3% as Metalac added 3.7%, while Tehnogas saw 0.6% gain. NIS was the most active, even with light RSD 1m in volume. Komercijana Banka reported 36% drop in net profit for the first half of 2020, which suggests that 2Q was not impressive. The fall arrived on the back of lower net interest income, lower net F&C income and higher cost of salaries as well as due to absence of gains on revaluations. Today we expect some 2Q numbers from Metalac.
Eighty per cent of companies are against an increase of the minimum wage next year, whereas only 15% are ready to accept the increase, but only with substantially reduced operating costs. This is the result of the survey among employers carried out last week by the Serbian Association of Employers. The position is considerably different than last year, when 46% of those surveyed found an increase of the minimum wage acceptable. This reflects the worsened business conditions as a consequence of the Covid-19 crisis. (CNBC, ILIRIKA)
