-Eurozone services PMI slightly ahead of forecasts
-Spanish 10 year bonds are up by 6 basis points to 5.81%
-Weak Spanish services PMI reading

FTSE-100: 0.28%
Dax-30: 0.22%
Cac-40: -0.24%
FTSE-Mibtel 30: 0.25%
Ibex 35: -0.51%
Stoxx 600: -0.09%

European equities finished the day in a mixed fashion despite the release of important economic indicators Stateside this afternoon. That as investors hold out for tonight's televised election debate, the first in this US Presidential campaign. Worth noting in that regard, some of the latest polls now point to Obama holding on to a small lead.

Vestas Wind Systems fell after a lacklustre performance on the part of management at a capital markets day for the firm.

Telefonica has announced its intention to float its German unit this October.

Catering services firm Sodexo is climbing after Credit Suisse Group AG raised the company to outperform, from neutral.

From a sector stand-point the best performance on the DJ Stoxx 600 was seen in the following industrial groups: Utilities (0.66%), Food (0.23%) and Travel&Leisure (0.22%).

Positive surprise in Eurozone retail sales, but...

The Eurozone services sector purchasing managers' index for the month of September has come in at 46.1 points, versus 46.3 for the month before (Consensus: 46).

Chris Williamson, Chief Economist at Markit said: "The final Eurozone PMI came in slightly higher than the flash estimate but still signalled one of the steepest monthly downturns seen over the past three years. It seems inevitable that the region will have fallen back into recession in the third quarter."

The Irish unemployment rate for the month of September has remained unchanged at 14.8%, although the previous month's reading has been revised up by a tenth of a percentage point.

Eurozone retail sales rose by 0.1% month-on-month in August (Consensus: -0.1%). The previous month's reading was revised up to show a gain of 0.1% on month versus a preliminary estimate of -0.2%.

Worth pointing out, the extremely weak reading for today's Spanish services sector PMI, which came in at 40.2 (Consensus: 42), after a reading of 44 for August.

Oil futures fall

The euro/dollar is now down by 0.10% to the 1.2906 dollar mark.

Front month Brent crude futures are off by 2.273 dollars to the 109.09 dollar level on the ICE at the moment.



AB

Related share prices