A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from

Stella Qiu

Services PMIs due across Europe on Thursday are likely

to show further moderation in activity and cement expectations

for rate cuts in the region, while potential rate moves in New

Zealand and the U.S. are also in focus.

Investors are already betting the European Central Bank will

cut rates by 25 basis points at its next two meetings, in

October and December, after top hawk Isabel Schnabel sounded

more sanguine about inflation coming under control.

While services are expanding in Britain, the composite PMIs

in Germany and elsewhere in Europe are expected to continue

showing contraction in data for September.

In the U.S., jobless claims and the ISM services survey will

top Thursday's data docket, although the main event will be

Friday's payroll figures.

In New Zealand, expectations are rising among economists

that the central bank will cut by 50 bps at each of its meetings

in October and November.

The manufacturing PMI in global trade bellwether Singapore

remained in expansionary territory in September, data showed

late on Wednesday. New orders were up and the electronics PMI

hit its highest since 2018 although analysts cautioned of

possible weakness ahead, as rising input prices may point to

supply chain challenges while backlogs in electronics orders are

subsiding.

Asian markets, meanwhile, had a mixed day, with the MSCI

ex-Japan index falling 1.4%, retreating from a 32-month peak.

That was driven by a 3.5% drop in Hong Kong's Hang Seng, which

pulled back following a meteoric rise of 30% in just three

weeks.

Hong Kong tech shares were down more than 5% and

property stocks were headed for their largest one-day drop in

almost two years, falling 7.2%.

The other big mover was Japan's Nikkei, which rallied 2.3%

as newly elected Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba shed his hawkish

feathers and essentially told the Bank of Japan not to hike

rates any further. BOJ policy dove Asahi Noguchi reinforced that

message, saying the central bank must patiently maintain loose

monetary policy.

That's good for Japanese stocks, but not so much for the

yen, which dropped to its lowest in month. The currency fell 2%

overnight and was last at 146.9 per dollar.

Markets now indicate almost no chance of a BOJ tightening in

October and an increase of just 4.6 basis points in December, or

less than an even chance of a 10 bp move. Rates are seen only

reaching 0.5% by the end of next year, from the current 0.25%.

Key developments that could influence markets on Thursday:

-- HCOB Eurozone Services PMI

-- U.K. S&P Global Servces PMI

-- U.S. jobless claims, ISM services PMI

-- Appearances by Fed Bank of Atlanta President Raphael

Bostic and Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari,