Ibex 35 Opens Higher as Traders Eye Powell and Lagarde Speeches at Jackson Hole
The Ibex 35 began the week with a modest 0.65% gain, lifting the benchmark to 9,399 points and briefly challenging the 9,400 level before pocketing a small profit of about 0.8% in early trading.
By 9:04 a.m. Madrid time, the Spanish index hovered around 9,410 points on a day lacking major macro triggers, yet market participants kept a close watch on events unfolding at the Jackson Hole symposium where the Presidents of the U.S. Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank are delivering remarks.
Powell used a keynote at the symposium last Friday to remind listeners that inflation remains stubbornly high even after a recent slowdown. He signaled that the Federal Reserve stands ready to raise rates again if needed, underscoring a commitment to ensure inflation continues its downward path toward the target.
The comments from Powell were echoed by Lagarde, speaking at Jackson Hole after European markets closed for the day. She warned that the battle against inflation is not over, but that monetary tightening has yielded progress. Lagarde emphasized that the ECB will adjust policy rates to levels that are sufficiently restrictive to bring inflation back toward the 2% medium-term target in a timely manner.
As the week unfolds, traders remain cautious about upcoming CPI data for the euro area and several European economies, including Germany and Spain, as well as the quarterly U.S. GDP figures.
Following a positive close on Wall Street last Friday and a broad rally in Asian markets, Europe’s major indices opened the week with gains. Frankfurt rose about 0.77%, Paris 0.85%, and Milan roughly 0.80%. London’s market stayed closed today for a holiday, influencing regional liquidity and sentiment.
In the Ibex 35’s early leaders, Fluidra led the gains with about a 1.34% rise, followed by Inditex near 1.08%, ACS around 0.98%, Acerinox at 0.83%, Repsol up about 0.82%, and Aena around 0.75%.
Oil prices showed modest movement at the opening. Brent crude traded near $84.20 per barrel in early European trade, while the U.S. benchmark WTI hovered around $80.19. In the Forex market, the euro edged higher to approximately 1.0818 per dollar, signaling a strengthening of the single currency in early European hours. On the debt side, Spain’s 10-year yield slipped to about 3.58%, reflecting cautious risk sentiment and expectations for central bank guidance. [Citation: Market Desk, Global Markets]