Global stocks falter on China’s economic woes

London/Hong Kong — Global stocks slipped on Wednesday for the third time in four sessions as more disappointing Chinese economic data and the absence of meaningful stimulus from Beijing continued to weigh on investor sentiment.

European stocks and US futures edged higher, however, after dropping sharply on Tuesday. Investors were waiting for minutes from the Federal Reserve’s July meeting, due out later on Wednesday.

The MSCI World Equity index was down 0.19% as of 8.45am GMT. It was dragged lower by a sharp drop in Asian equities, with the MSCI Asia index, which excludes Japan, falling 0.98%.

“Much of the decline is explained by continuing concerns surrounding the economic slowdown in China, as well as rising tensions with the US,” said Thomas Gehlen, senior market strategist at Kleinwort Hambros.

Yet he added: “The news [is] not unanimously bad. After all, China is exporting deflation to the rest of the world.”

Beijing’s balancing act

China’s new home prices fell for the first time this year in July, data showed on Wednesday, the latest in a string of downbeat numbers that point to a rapid loss in economic momentum.

On Tuesday, China reported weaker-than-expected July activity data. The Chinese central bank also unexpectedly lowered its policy rate on Tuesday, after a long run of disappointing figures and the arrival of deflation in July, but investors have so far been underwhelmed by the response.

Europe’s Stoxx 600 stock index rose 0.2% in early trading on Wednesday, but failed to recover from Tuesday’s 0.93% fall, which was driven by concerns about global inflation and China.

Germany’s DAX was up 0.23% after losing 0.86% on Tuesday, while Britain’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.09% after a 1.57% drop.

US futures pointed to a brighter start on Wall Street, with S&P contracts up 0.24% and Nasdaq contracts 0.31% higher.

The S&P 500 fell 1.16% on Tuesday after stronger-than-expected US retail sales data added to the pressure on the Fed to keep interest rates at high levels.

In currency markets, sterling picked up after data showed that Britain’s inflation fell sharply in July but the core measure came in slightly higher than expected. Sterling was last up 0.46% at $1.276.