Australian shares seen steady, tracking European markets
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The news: The Australian sharemarket is set to open barely changed amid a lack of cues with US markets closed for the Labor Day public holiday and European markets ending modestly lower.
The numbers: The pan-European STOXX 600 index was little changed at 524.94 points, still hovering around its record highs touched last week, while Britain's FTSE 100 ended 0.2% lower. In the local market, ASX 200 futures were up just 4 points or 0.05% at 8,074 points at 7am AEST on Tuesday.
The context: European shares were little changed overnight, as investors analysed economic data for clues on the European Central bank's policy trajectory, even as populist wins in Germany's state elections injected uncertainty.
Data last week showed eurozone inflation fell to its slowest pace in three years but a separate survey showed the downturn in Germany's manufacturing sector continued to gather pace in August, with eurozone manufacturing activity also contracting.
Money markets have almost fully priced in a 25 basis-point rate cut by the ECB on 12 September, according to LSEG data. Meanwhile, investors are bracing for a data-packed week culminating in a US jobs report that could decide whether a Fed rate cut expected this month will be regular or super-sized.
The source: Reuters
