European Markets Advance, Natural Gas Drops to 7-month Low

Bridgette Randall
24 Oct, 2022
Frankfurt

European markets traded higher and investors digested two private economic surveys and political developments in the region. 

Economic activities in the eurozone declined deeper into recessionary territory in October, according to S&P Global. 

The PMI index dropped to 47.1 in October from 48.1 in September, the survey showed. 

In a separate report, the UK private sector activities declined to 47.2 in October from 49.1 in September, the S&P Global/CIPS Composite indicated. 

Major averages accelerated gains following the rise in New York and the British pound held stable and UK gilt yields edged down after the election of Rishi Sunak as the next prime minister. 

Sunak is the first British-Indian and Hindu to become prime minister of the U.K. and the leader of the Conservative Party, as the party and the island nation embrace cultural diversity after centuries of policies supporting racial divide. 

 

Sunak Wins UK PM Race, Meloni Appointed Italian PM 

Rishi Sunak won the leadership race for the Conservative Party after Penny Mordaunt pulled out of the race just two minutes before the deadline and tweeted that Sunak had "her full support."

Former prime minister Boris Johnson dropped out of the race on Sunday night, paving the way for Sunak to lead the party. 

Giorgia Meloni was sworn in as Italy's first woman prime minister on Saturday. 

 

European Indexes Jump 2%

The DAX index advanced 1.8% to 12,965.60, the CAC-40 index gained 1.9% to 6,148.85 and the FTSE 100 index 7,018.39. 

The euro fell to 98.38 U.S. cents and the British pound edged up to $1.13. 

Brent crude oil gained $1.23 to $92.30 a barrel and TTF natural gas declined 18% to $94.80 per MWh.  

The yield on 10-year German bunds fell to 2.32%, French bonds eased to 2.86%, Italian bonds declined to 4.59% and the UK bonds to 3.81%. 

Philips Electronics NV dropped as much as 5% but recovered to close down 2.2% to