Tech Stocks Lead Europe Lower

Ivaylo
19 Jan, 2007
New York City

European markets opened lower on Friday as gains for construction and building groups were offset by falling technology stocks and utilities, although French construction group Vinci climbed in Paris. Markets were impacted negatively after technology stocks sank overnight on US market disappointing outlooks from computer group Apple and Lam Research. By mid morning, London FTSE 100 lost 0.3%, Frankfurt Xetra Dax fell 0.3%, and the CAC 40 in Paris shed 0.2%.

[R]6:30 AM European stocks dropped as tech stocks countered gains in ither shares.[/R]
European markets were lower on Friday. By mid morning, London FTSE 100 lost 0.3% to 6,194.5, Frankfurt Xetra Dax fell 0.3% to 6,667.46, and the CAC 40 in Paris shed 0.2% to 5,544.36.

Decliners

The lower-than-expected full-year profit forecast of Lam hit chip-related stocks in Europe. Dutch company ASML Holding fell 1.2%, while German chipmaker Infineon shed 3.5%, and Franco-Italian group STMicroelectronics lost 1%.

Euronext fell 3.4%, left with few hopes of a counter bid to rival the 14 billion euros agreed merger with NYSE Group,

French utility Suez lost 1.6% in Paris and ThyssenKrupp also declined 0.8% after recent gains. It said provisional figures show that Q1 profit before tax rose to 1 billion euros, or $1.29 billion, from 425 million euros last year, after sales rose 12% to 12.2 billion euros.

Advancers

Vinci, the French public works and transport concessions company, gained 4.6% after Artemis, said it had acquired a 5.1% stake and was open for any opportunity. French building materials group Saint Gobain rose 2.3% after Credit Suisse raised its rating from neutral to outperform” and raised its price target.

Schneider Electric gained 2.2% after the French electrical products group announced that its Q4 sales rose 12.3% to 3.66 billion euros, helped by a good performance in Europe. Fiat gained 3.3% after UBS upgraded the stock from neutral to buy and lifted its price target.

Shares in Deutsche Börse, the German stock exchange operator, rose 2.8% following reports it was considering dividing its managment structure into three sectors, concentrating on internal growth rather than acquisitions.

Oil and commodities

Oil prices fell in Asian trading Friday after the U.S. Energy Department said U.S. crude inventories rose by the most in more than four years. Light, sweet crude for February delivery dropped 8 cents to $50.40 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. February Brent crude on London ICE Futures exchange added just 2 cents to trade at $51.77 a barrel.

Gold headed for its second consecutive weekly gain in London as the dollar fell. Gold for immediate delivery rose $1.10, or 0.2%, to $628.80 an ounce in early trade in London. Other precious metals also gained including silver which was up 1 cent to $12.65, palladium added $1 to $340, while platinum dropped $6.50 to $1,151.50 an ounce.

Currencies

The euro was a little higher against the U.S. dollar on Friday. The 13-nation euro bought $1.2971 in morning European trading, slightly above its level of $1.2959 in New York late Thursday. The British pound slipped to $1.9716 from $1.9733. The dollar edged up to 121.29 Japanese yen, from 121.26 yen.

[R]5:00 AM Gold and silver declined Thursday on crude oil drop.[/R]
Most-active February gold sank $5.20 to close at $628.10 an ounce and March silver also dipped 20.5 cents to end at $12.685. April platinum reached its highest level since Dec. 1 at $1,176 an ounce. March palladium settled at $343.40, up 45 cents. The most-active March copper contract settled down 7.75 cents at $2.4920 per pound

Crude oil futures slumped to a fresh 20-month low, falling briefly below $50 a barrel after the Energy Department said U.S. stockpiles advanced by the most in more than four years. The front-month February light, sweet crude settled down $1.76 at $50.48 a barrel. February heating oil settled down 2.91 cents at $1.4707 a gallon. Gasoline lost 2.33 cents to close at $1.3553 a gallon. February natural gas gained 9 cents to finish at $6.324 per million British thermal units.

On the New York Board of Trade, March Arabica coffee futures settled down 1.85 cents at $1.1975 a pound, with May off 1.85 cents at $1.2295. Futures on raw sugar in foreign ports for March settled down 0.05 cent at 10.71 cents a pound, with May off 0.02 cent at 10.82 cents.