European Economics Preview: Swiss Central Bank Decision Due

The monetary policy announcement from the Swiss National Bank and flash Purchasing Managers’ survey results from major eurozone economies are due on Thursday, headlining a busy day for the European economic news.

At 3.45 am ET, France’s statistical office Insee releases business confidence survey results. The business sentiment index is forecast to fall marginally to 110 in March from 112 in February.

At 4.15 am ET, IHS Markit releases France flash composite PMI survey data. The composite PMI is seen at 54.3 in March, down from 55.5 in February.

At 4.30 am ET, the Swiss National Bank announces its interest rate decision. The central bank is likely to retain the policy rate and interest on sight deposits at the SNB at -0.75 percent.

In the meantime, Germany’s flash composite PMI data is due. Economists forecast the indicator to drop to 53.7 in March from 55.6 in February.

At 5.00 am ET, Norges Bank is slated to announce the outcome of its Monetary Policy and Financial Stability Committee meeting. The bank is forecast to hike its rate to 0.75 percent from 0.50 percent.

Also, Eurozone flash composite PMI survey results are due. The flash composite Purchasing Managers’ Index is expected to drop to 53.9 in March from 55.5 in the previous month.

At 5.30 am ET, UK Markit/CIPS flash composite survey data is due. Economists expect the indicator to drop to 57.8 in March from 59.9 a month ago.

At 7.00 am ET, the Confederation of British Industry publishes Distributive Trades survey data. The retail sales balance is forecast to fall to 10 percent in March from 14 percent in February.

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