Spain’s benchmark index showed little movement, with the main indicator barely budging as the market opened. The Ibex 35 hovered around its previous levels, nudging higher by a mere 0.03% as investors absorbed the latest data. The session began with the EPA for 2023 on the table, a year that saw unemployment fall by 193,400 positions, a reduction of 6.4% from 2022, while employment rose by about 783,000 jobs, signaling a strengthening labor market. The year closed with employment surpassing 21 million and total unemployment below 3 million, a set of numbers that traders watched closely as they assessed the economy’s resilience.
Investor focus shifted to the earnings reports due from major names like Volvo, American Express, and Caterpillar, with results expected to influence sentiment and sector leadership. The market’s attention settled on corporate performance and guidance, looking for clues about demand trends, margins, and whether the late-year momentum could extend into the new quarter.
In regulatory news, the Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores lifted the suspension on Ezentis, ending a prolonged halt that had persisted for more than a year. Trading resumed as of early morning, with market participants weighing the implications for liquidity, capital structure, and potential re-rating for the company.
During the initial stretch of Friday’s session, the Ibex 35 showed mixed advances. Leading gains were seen in Repsol, up around 0.76%, followed by Acciona Energía at roughly 0.75%, Redeia near 0.47%, and Acciona up about 0.37%. Banks also showed modest strength, with Unicaja Banco rising about 0.35% while Bankinter traded slightly lower around 0.35%. Other notable movers included Rovi, which slipped about 0.31%, Cellnex down roughly 0.28%, Banco Sabadell easing around 0.26%, and Inditex retreating near 0.20%.
Across Europe, trading sentiment was mixed early on. Frankfurt registered a modest gain near 0.2%, while Paris, London, and Milan posted increases of approximately 1.39%, 0.83%, and 0.21% respectively, underscoring a cautious but positive tone across major markets.
Commodities and currencies provided further context for traders. The Brent crude benchmark, a gasping marker for European oil pricing, opened the session lower, slipping about 0.56% to around $81.97 per barrel. Texas tea followed with a roughly 0.79% drop to about $76.75 per barrel, signaling varied supply-and-demand dynamics in global energy markets. In the currency arena, the euro steadied above parity with the dollar, trading around 1.0827 dollars to the euro, while debt markets reflected a higher appetite for risk with Spanish 10-year government bonds yielding about 3.166%.