European markets seen lower; China trade disappoints

European equities are set to open lower on Tuesday morning after Chinese trade data overnight came in below expectations.

The FTSE 100 is set to open 15 points lower at 7,515, the DAX is seen off by 14 points at 12,233 and the CAC is set to start lower by 6 points at 5,197.

Asian equities walked away from nearing a decade high after data showed lower than expected imports and exports from China in July. In renminbi terms, exports grew 11.2 percent and imports rose 14.7 percent. Steel and iron ore prices rose again following the data, which could push basic resources stocks in Europe higher at the open.

Investors will also be watching out for trade data in Germany and France, due at 7:00 a.m. and 7:45 a.m. London time, respectively.

In the U.K., the British Retail Consortium reported lower sales growth in July. Retail sales were up by an annual 0.9 percent on a like-for-like basis, down from a rise of 1.2 percent in June, according to the new data out Tuesday. Meanwhile, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) said Tuesday U.K. recruiters are blaming Brexit as a staff shortage worsened last month.

In the corporate world, Pandora, Standard Life, Worldpay, Savills and Bellway are all due to report.

In the U.S., St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said Monday the central bank doesn’t need to change rates in the near term because inflation is unlikely to rise significantly, despite improvements in the labor market.

Source: CNBC