|
||||||||
  |
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Europe pressured by jobless data
LONDON, England (CNN) -- European markets slipped lower at midday on Friday as gains by chipmakers, following a strong outlook from sector leader Intel, evaporated as investors braced for critical U.S. employment data. London's FTSE 100 was down 0.3 percent to 4,020.3 and Frankfurt's electronically traded Xetra Dax lost 1.8 percent to 3,167.22, while the CAC 40 blue chip index in Paris was flat at 3,157.82. The pan-European FTSE Eurotop 300, a broader index of the region's largest stocks, was down 0.5 percent. "The key focus for the market today in the U.S. jobs data which the markets suspect will come through weaker than initial expectations in the wake of this week's manufacturing report," David Brow, an economist at Bears Stearns, told Reuters. "Weak jobs data would pull the rug out again from under the stock market's feet." Concern for the unemployment numbers eroded initial gains in computer stocks, which were prompted by an upbeat revenue forecast from Intel, the world's biggest chipmaker. It raised its outlook for the fourth quarter to between $6.8 billion and $7 billion from a previous forecast of between $6.5 billion and $6.9 billion. (Full story) France's STMicroelectronics (PSTM), Europe's largest chipmaker, fell 2.4 percent to 22.21 euros and Germany's Infineon Technologies (FIFX), the region's No. 2, lost 3.2 percent to 9.25 euros. Both had notched up strong gain earlier in the session. Meanwhile, French bank Credit Lyonnais (PCL) was up 5.5 percent to 55 euros after it said that Credit Agricole had raised its stake in it to 12.17 percent, in a sign that Lyonnais could become the object of a bidding war between Agricole and rival BNP Paribas. (Full story) Credit Agricole (PACA) fell 4.5 percent to 15.47 euros in Paris, while BNP Paribas (PBNP) was up 0.8 percent to 37.69 euros. France Telecom (PFTE), Europe's second-largest phone company, gained 6.8 percent to 20.18 euros after the French government said it would give the group 9 billion euros as part of a massive restructuring programme to cut debts of 70 billion euros. (Full story) Its mobile phone unit Orange (PORA) added 3.2 percent to 7.52 euros. On Thursday, it said it was delaying the rollout of high-speed networks in Europe. (Full story) Shares in Fiat, Italy's largest industrial group, fell 3.2 percent to 9.12 euros after workers began striking as talks between the company and unions collapsed when labour leaders refused to accept a government-brokered plan aimed at softening job cuts. (Full story) The AEX index in Amsterdam was down 0.8 percent, Milan's MIB30 index lost 0.7 percent and the SMI in Zurich fell 0.6 percent. In the U.S. on Thursday, stocks fell for the fifth consecutive session after a setback for air carrier UAL, although Intel's improved forecast after the bell was expected to boost stocks on Friday. (Full report) The Dow Jones industrial average lost 114.57 points to 8623.28, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 11.03 points to 906.55 and the Nasdaq composite declined 19.60 points to 1410.75. Wall Street was expected to open lower later on Friday. S&P 500 index futures were down 3.4 points to 905.10 on the Globex trading system, while fair value, a measure that takes account of interest costs and dividend payments, was calculated at 907.01.
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
