What you need to know in the morning (September 8)

1. U.S. stocks closed mixed on Thursday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite weakening on Apple

Stocks in the United States closed mixed on Thursday. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indexes fell due to a drop in Apple shares. A drop in new jobless claims in the US added to concerns about interest rates and persistently high inflation. Investors are awaiting the US inflation report for August, which will be released next week. The Dow rose 0.17% to end trading at 34,500.73 points, the broader S&P 500 index fell 0.32% to 4,451.14 points and the Nasdaq Composite technology index lost 0.89% to close at 13,748.83 points. The VIX volatility index fell 0.35% to 14.40 points and the yield on the 10-year US government bond fell about four and a half basis points to 4.248%.

2. European stocks were mixed on Thursday, with the STOXX Europe 600 index falling for the seventh straight session

Trading on Western European stock markets ended mixed on Thursday. Investors were assessing, among other things, a report on the development of the European economy in the second quarter. The pan-European STOXX Europe 600 index declined for the seventh consecutive session, its longest such streak since February 2018. The decline was led by mining stocks, while utilities sector titles fared better. The STOXX Europe 600 fell 0.14% to 453.67 points and the German DAX declined 0.14% to 15,718.66 points, while the UK's FTSE 100 rose 0.21% to 7,441.72 points and the French CAC 40 firmed 0.03% to 7,196.10 points.

3. The Prague Stock Exchange lost ground on Thursday, dragged down mainly by Erste and Komerční banka

The Prague Stock Exchange's PX index fell 0.16% to 1,337.14 points on Thursday, almost erasing its Wednesday's gain. It was dragged down mainly by shares of banking house Erste and Komerční banka. MONETA had the opposite effect on the index.

4. Expected events

On Friday night, investors will be assessing the news from Japan (GDP, current account, household spending, trade balance). The morning will belong to German inflation and in the afternoon investors will focus on Canadian unemployment or US wholesale inventories.

5. German economy weakens, recovery to be slower according to Ifo

The cooling of the German economy is continuing, with gross domestic product expected to rise by 1.4% year-on-year in the coming year and by 1.2% in 2025, following an expected 0.4% contraction this year, the Ifo economic institute said in an outlook published on Thursday, having expected GDP growth to be 0.1 percentage points higher next year as recently as June. The Leibniz Institute for Economic Research in Halle (IWH) also published another estimate of the German economy, which foresees a 0.5% decline this year.

6. British American Tobacco agrees to sell activities in Russia and Belarus

British American Tobacco (BAT) has agreed to sell its operations in Russia and Belarus to a consortium led by the management of its Russian division. It was announced on Thursday by the company, which committed to leaving Russia last March in response to the invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops. The firm did not disclose the financial terms of the deal. BAT's activities are expected to be sold at a loss, according to Financial Times sources.

7. Microsoft: China is using AI and fake accounts to influence US voters

Researchers at US technology company Microsoft announced on Thursday that they have apparently uncovered a network of fake accounts on social networks controlled by China. Beijing is trying to influence US voters through them, including by using artificial intelligence (AI), Reuters reported.

8. QUALCOMM chief: Artificial intelligence can breathe new life into smartphones

Artificial intelligence (AI) could breathe new life into the smartphone market. In an interview with CNBC, Cristiano Amon, head of US chipmaker QUALCOMM, said this. He sees significant opportunities in AI technology. The development of mobile technology could be triggered by the Snapdragon Summit event in October, which is named after QUALCOMM's chipset and is used to showcase new technologies, products and innovations, he said.

9. EU economy stagnates in Q2, slows year-on-year growth

The European Union's economy stagnated in the second quarter on a seasonally adjusted basis, while it posted growth of 0.2% in the first three months of the year compared with the previous three months, the statistics office Eurostat said in a revised report on Thursday. Year-on-year gross domestic product growth slowed to 0.4% from 1.1% in the first quarter. This is a worse development as Eurostat said in its preliminary report that growth in the second quarter was 0.5%.

10. China's exports fell for the fourth consecutive month in August as trade slowdown persists

Exports from China fell 8.8% year-on-year in August, a smaller decline than in July and also a slightly better-than-expected result. However, this is the fourth monthly decline in a row, confirming that trade activity remains in the doldrums. The statistics were released on Thursday by China's customs bureau. China, sometimes dubbed the world's factory, is struggling with weak global demand. The decline in trade is deepening the problems of the Chinese economy.