EUR
Greece’s government is hoping to conclude bailout talks with its creditors by
Tuesday, giving the debt-ridden country time to pass the deal ahead of its next
repayment to the European Central Bank (ECB). Details of a plan that would
make up to 86bn euros (£60.9bn) available to Greece are being negotiated with
the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Commission, the European
Stability Mechanism and the ECB, in talks that began on 20 July.

EUR
Greece’s government is hoping to conclude bailout talks with its creditors by
Tuesday, giving the debt-ridden country time to pass the deal ahead of its next
repayment to the European Central Bank (ECB). Details of a plan that would
make up to 86bn euros (£60.9bn) available to Greece are being negotiated with
the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Commission, the European
Stability Mechanism and the ECB, in talks that began on 20 July.

The parties must either reach an agreement or settle on a bridge loan for
cash-strapped Greece before 20 August, when a £2.4bn repayment is due to the
ECB. 

Greece’s prime minister Alexis Tsipras said last week that talks with lenders
were in “the final stretch”, and Greek officials are
optimistic that an agreement can be met by Tuesday, giving the Greek
parliament time to pass the deal ahead of the payment due to the ECB.

GBP
Britain’s trade deficit with the rest of the world narrowed
significantly in the second quarter and looks set to boost economic
growth. Figures on Friday showed the biggest surge in goods export volumes in
more than nine years in the three months to the end of June. Britain’s
total goods and services deficit fell to its lowest level in four years. The
Office for National Statistics said the figures indicated that trade likely
added to growth in the second quarter, which according to an early estimate
stood at 0.7 percent.

The total trade deficit in the second quarter fell to 4.812 billion pounds from
7.496 billion pounds the smallest since the second quarter of 2011. Goods
export volumes surged 6.6 percent on the quarter driven by exports to
non-European Union countries particularly semi-manufactured goods and fuels
that was the biggest quarterly jump since early 2006.

USD
Employers added jobs at a steady pace and wages rose slightly in July, but
millions of Americans stayed on the side-lines in the latest sign of some slack
in the labour market. Non-farm payrolls rose a seasonally adjusted 215,000 in
July, the Labour Department said Friday. Revisions showed employers added
14,000 more jobs in May and June than previously estimated.

The unemployment rate, which is obtained from a separate survey of U.S.
households, held steady at 5.3% in July. Average hourly earnings of
private-sector workers rose 5 cents, or 0.2%, last month to $24.99. From a year
earlier, wages were up 2.1%, in line with the 2.0% pace during the six-year
expansion 

Meanwhile, the share of Americans participating in the labour force was
unchanged at 62.6% in July. That matches the lowest reading since 1977
suggesting there is still considerable spare capacity in the US labour market.
 

Key Announcements:

There are no key announcements today.