Market News

• Prior +2.9%
• HICP +3.2% vs +3.4% y/y expected
• Prior +2.9%

Italy's inflation rate accelerated in August 2026, driven primarily by a sharp increase in energy costs. The Consumer Price Index rose by 0.5% compared with July and increased by 3.3% on an annual basis, up from 2.9% in the previous month.

The main driver behind the acceleration was the energy sector. Prices for non-regulated energy products climbed 16.9% y/y, accelerating from 11.4% in July. Meanwhile, regulated energy products rose 18.8% annually, compared with 14.8% in the previous month.

The strong rise in energy prices contributed significantly to the monthly increase in the overall index. Regulated energy products increased by 3.2% compared with July, while non-regulated energy…

• Eurozone August preliminary CPI +3.3% vs +3.3% y/y expected
• Prior +2.9%
• Eurozone August preliminary core CPI +2.4% vs +2.5% y/y expected
• Prior +2.5%

No surprises there as headline annual inflation jumps back up above the 3% mark again - the first time since May. This is largely led by a surge in energy price inflation, which clocked in at 14.3% in August. That is seen way up from 10.3% in July.

Even on the monthly estimate, energy prices were seen shooting up by 2.9%. That is what is pushing up monthly headline inflation by 0.4% in August. Besides that, services inflation was up 0.1% on the month while food price inflation was flat.

The only surprise in this report was that core annual inflation was seen easing just a little bit more to 2.4%.…

• Prior 51.9

Key findings:

• Output and new order growth slow
• Job creation at two-year high

Comment:

Rob Dobson, Director at S&P Global Market Intelligence said:

“The rate of expansion in the UK manufacturing sector cooled in August, with output and new order growth losing traction. There are still signs for continued optimism, however, as manufacturers reported a positive outlook for the year ahead. Business confidence rose to a six-month high and job creation was the strongest for two years. This suggests that the slowdown was mainly driven by a reduced focus on maintaining precautionary stocks as economic uncertainty eases, especially as domestic and overseas clients continue to show a willingness to spend albeit with a relatively high…

• France August final manufacturing PMI 51.1 vs 51.5 prelim
• Prior 49.8

This reaffirms a mild rebound in French manufacturing activity in August, bolstered by better production growth. That being said, new orders continued to shrink further and that's a signal that demand conditions remain rather subdued.

Some added good news at least is that inflationary pressures receded further on the month, even as suppliers' delivery times lengthened to a sharper degree. Both input prices and output charges rose at their slowest rates since February, but still above levels seen before the US-Iran conflict.

S&P Global notes that:

• UK July mortgage approvals 56.05k vs 59.50k expected
• Prior 58.20k; revised to 58.21k
• UK July net consumer credit £2.0 billion vs £1.8 billion expected
• Prior £1.81 billion; revised to £1.86 billion

Net mortgage approvals were seen falling in July to 56,100, and that is well below the previous 6-month average of 60,800.

Adding to that, the net borrowing of mortgage debt by individuals decreased to £4.3 billion in July - down from £7.7 billion in June. That figure is also now falling below the previous 6-month average of £5.3 billion.

So, that marks a considerable slowdown in mortgage borrowing as the market loses some momentum.

Meanwhile, net borrowing of consumer credit by individuals did increase slightly to £2.0 billion in July. The breakdown…

 FISG - InterStellar Group, a premier global forex and CFD brokerage, today officially announced a strategic partnership with football icon and World Cup winner Andrés Iniesta. Iniesta joins FISG as the company's Global Brand Ambassador and Global Brand Experience Officer.

United under the core theme "Master The Moment," the partnership centers on four core pillars shared by both high-stakes trading and elite athletics: Speed, Precision, Agility, and Trust. Together, FISG and Iniesta will drive deep collaboration across brand strategy, marketing initiatives, and global user experience enhancements.

Split-Second Decisions: Shared Values Between Pitch and Market

As one of the greatest midfielders in football history, Iniesta is world-renowned…

US Treasury secretary Bessent might be trying to nudge markets in one direction but traders are not really listening to that all too much. Despite his comments overnight, we are once again seeing USD/JPY push up to test the waters above the 160.00 level today.

Intervention time again?

The currency pair saw a nudge up to try and push above the figure level on Friday, following Fed chair Warsh's more hawkish remarks. But as the dollar eased a little yesterday, there wasn't much appetite to go running.

But now though, traders are needing to digest the broader selloff in global bonds. And that is evidently spilling over to Treasuries as well.

In Europe, we're seeing bond yields hit highs in over a decade and Japan's initial budget request being…

• Eurozone August final manufacturing PMI 52.7 vs 52.8 prelim
• Prior 51.9

The final estimate reaffirms a solid showing in euro area industrial activity in August, with both factory output and new orders rising at their quickest rates since early-2022.

The added good news is that inflation pressures also continued to ease, although rates of increase in both input costs and output prices were still above those seen immediately prior to the US-Iran conflict.

The biggest positive swing to the overall report comes from Germany, which recorded its best month of manufacturing sector growth in over four years. So, that will come as a bit of a relief after the constant woes surrounding the industry in recent years.

Besides that, business confidence…

• France August final manufacturing PMI 51.1 vs 51.5 prelim
• Prior 49.8

More to come..

• Prior was 52.2

Key findings:

Comment:

Key takeaways for stock traders

• PCG and EIX: A regulatory-risk repricing, not a routine utilities decline. PCG in overnight trading is down over 27% since yesterday's high and will be interesting to watch today.
• RBLX: New engagement data is challenging the company’s cautious prior outlook.
• CRWD: Strong earnings and AI-security growth continue to support momentum.
• TSLA: Robotaxi and Full Self-Driving expectations are driving the move more than current vehicle fundamentals.
• SLB: Higher oil and a data-center cooling acquisition provide two separate catalysts.
• AMZN: A new advertising lawsuit raises questions around one of Amazon’s more profitable businesses.

Why are PCG and Edison International falling?

PG&E (PCG) and Edison International (EIX) are…

• Spain August manufacturing PMI 49.5 vs 50.3 expected
• Prior 50.2

It's not a good look in August for Spain manufacturing activity, with both output and new orders declining. The worsening business activity reflected some concerns over rising prices, especially for energy, with latest data showing a noticeable acceleration in overall input cost inflation.

Meanwhile, supply-side challenges also remained evident, with typical lead times for the delivery of inputs again deteriorating to a considerable degree.

Circling back to the drop in production, that is also in part due to the usual seasonality related to summer factory shutdowns. However, the survey notes that the drop was primarily linked by panellists to a modest decline in new work amid…