U.S. Stocks Trim Losses after Selloff Spraked by Portgual Bank Worries

Nichole Harper
10 Jul, 2014
New York City

Market indexes on Wall Street dropped as much as 1.5% after fresh worries resurfaced on European bank health. Portugal suspended trading in troubled Espirito Santo after the bank failed to meet its debt obligation. U.S.

[R]1:15 PM New York – Market indexes on Wall Street dropped as much as 1.5% after fresh worries resurfaced on European bank health. Portugal suspended trading in troubled Espirito Santo after the bank failed to meet its debt obligation. U.S. weekly jobless claims declined to one of the lowest before the recession period.[/R]

Stocks on Wall Street opened lower and traded down after weekly jobless claims fell last week and new bank worries surfaced in Europe.

Initial claims of weekly jobless filed last week declined 11,000 to a seasonally adjusted 304,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday.

The weekly claims were one of the lowest before the onset of recession in 2007. The four-week moving average for new claims declined 3,500 to 31,500 last week.

Market indexes on Wall Street declined after fresh worries surfaced on the health of European banks.

The parent of Portugal based Espirito Santo failed to meet its debt obligation today forcing the Portuguese authorities to suspend trading in bank’s stock in Lisbon today.

Banks across Europe fell after the suspension and broader indexes in the region declined as much as 1.5%.

Tollbooth Index rose 0.6% or 59.51 to 9,433.72.

Other indexes on Wall Street, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indexes declined 0.4% on the worries that banks in Portugal may not be as healthy as once estimated.

U.S. Stocks in Review

CHC Group ((HELI)) plunged 13% to $7.51 after the commercial operator of helicopter reported a wider quarterly loss.

Family Dollar Stores, Inc ((FDO)) gained 0.6% to $64.65 and the deep discount chain operator reported quarterly profit plunged 33% and sales rose 3%.

Gencorp ((GY)) declined 2% to $18.01 and the maker of jet propulsion system reported wider quarterly net loss.

Progressive Corp ((PGR)) declined 2% to $24.66 and the personal and auto insurance provider reported quarterly net declined 10% while revenue jumped 5%.

WD-40 Company ((WDFC)) plunged 8.3% to $69.79 after the consumer products marketer reported flat quarterly net.

European Markets

In London trading, FTSE 100 index slumped 0.7% or 45.89 to 6,672.15 and in Frankfurt the DAX index declined 1.3% or 127.52 to 9,680.68.

In Paris, CAC 40 index dropped 1.2% or 49.99 to 4,309.85.

Burberry revenue climbed 17% to £370 million. Halfords declined despite revenue jumped 8%.

LSE, the operator of London Stock Exchange plunged after Qatari fold trimmed third of its stake.

Petrofac secured three-year contract for $700 million in Kuwait. Suedzucker profit tumbled 54.2% to €77 million.

Asian Markets

Stocks in Tokyo closed lower for the fourth day in a row and resource, banks and exporters led the widespread decline.

The Cabinet Office said core machinery orders in May plummeted 19.5% following a 9.1% shrinkage in April. On a yearly basis, machine orders tumbled 14.3%.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average dropped 86.18 or 0.5% to 15,216.47 and the broader Topix index slumped 11.57 to 1,259.25.

The yen eased and closed at 101.52 against one U.S. dollar.

The Sensex Index fell 72.06 or 0.3% to close at 25,372.75 The CNX Nifty slid 17.25 to 7,567.75.

Bharti Airtel, the India based telecom operator with a large presence across Africa divested nearly 3,100 telecom towers in four countries in Africa to Helios Towers.

ONGC Videsh, the international arm of the India controlled oil explorer priced unsecured bonds worth $1.5 billion and €525 million.

JSW Steel plans to import 6 million tons of iron ore from Canada and South Africa.