Tesco, Peugeot Limit European Decline

Elena
17 Apr, 2007
New York City

European stock markets ended mixed on Tuesday, as gains in the shares of oil producers, supermarket group Tesco and automaker Peugeot helped offset weakness in the technology-sector. Tesco rose 1.3% after Britain''s largest supermarket chain posted strong profit. Shares of Peugeot rose 3.2% on broker upgrade. The U.K.''s FTSE 100 fell 0.3%, German DAX 30 rose 0.2%, while the French CAC-40 lost 0.1%.

[R]1:00AM NY, 5:00 PM Frankfurt European stocks closed mixed.[/R]
European stock markets ended mixed on Tuesday, as gains in the shares of oil producers, supermarket group Tesco and automaker Peugeot helped offset weakness in the technology-sector. Among earnings-related stocks, Tesco rose 1.3% after Britain''s largest supermarket chain said fiscal-year net profit rose 20.5% to 1.9 billion pounds as it continued its international expansion. However, department-store operator Debenhams dropped 15% on profit warning. Shares of Peugeot rose 3.2% after Morgan Stanley upgraded the company to overweight from equal weight. Also in the sector, Volkswagen fgained 1.8% after it reported 8% increase in the sales of vehicles in the first quarter of 2007. On the merger-and-acquisition front, Telecom Italia shares lost 1.7% after AT&T Corp. ended talks late Monday on acquiring a stake in holding company Olimpia. Airline Alitalia was another decliner, falling 5.5%. The U.K.''s FTSE 100 fell 0.3% at 6,497.80 as the pound rose over $2 for the first time in 15 years against the dollar after stronger-than-expected inflation data. The German DAX Xetra 30 rose 0.2% at 7,348.83, while the French CAC-40 lost 0.1%.


[R]11:30AM U.S. market averages rebounded. The Dow rallied.[/R]
U.S. stocks took the upward direction on late Tuesday morning, with the Dow Jones hitting a record-high intraday on the back of upbeat economic data and earnings from Coca-Cola and Johnson & Johnson. Tech stocks traded in the positive ahead of earnings reports from IBM, Intel, and Yahoo, due out after market close. All three stocks gained about 1%. The Nasdaq rebounded from earlier decline, weighed down by Ameritrade. Banking stocks advanced, helped by gains for Wells Fargo ((WFC)) and Mellon Financial ((MEL)), although a 7% drop for Ameritrade ((AMTD)) helped limit gains.

Weakness in the semiconductor and disk drive sectors also prevented the Nasdaq from moving more firmly into positive territory. Chip maker Novellus ((NVLS)) fell 3.5% following a downgrade by Lehman Brothers. Housing, retail, and telecommunications stocks also posted some strength. The strength in the housing sector followed the release of a report showing an unexpected increase in housing starts in March. The Dow traded as high as 12,790.02, passing its closing high of 12,786.64, set on Feb. 20, and approached its trading high of 12,795.93, set the same day. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index rose 4.89, or 0.33%, to 1,473.36, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 2.13, or 0.08%, to 2,520.46.

[R]Industrial production fell 0.2%.[/R]
The Federal Reserve released its report on industrial production and capacity utilization in the month of March on Tuesday, showing that industrial production unexpectedly decreased compared to the previous month. The report showed that industrial production fell 0.2 percent in March following a revised 0.8 percent increase in February. Economists had expected production to edge up 0.1 percent compared to the 1.0 percent increase originally reported for the previous month. The unexpected drop in industrial production was largely due to a 7.0 percent drop in utilities output, which largely offset a 7.6 percent increase in the previous month. The drop came as temperatures swung from below seasonal norms in February to above seasonal norms in March.

At the same time, output in the manufacturing sector rose 0.7 percent in March after edging up 0.1 percept in February, benefiting from an increase in the production of durable goods. Mining output edged up 0.1 percent in March after rising 0.3 percent in the previous month. The Federal Reserve also said that the capacity utilization rate fell to 81.4 percent in March from a downwardly revised 81.6 percent in the previous month. Economists had expected the rate to come in at 81.9 percent compared to the 82.0 percent originally reported for February. Capacity utilization in the utilities sector fell to 83.5 percent in March from 89.8 percent in February, while capacity utilization in the manufacturing sector rose to 80.1 percent from 79.7 percent. The capacity utilization rate for the mining sector was unchanged at 90.9 percent.


[R]9:45AM U.S. markets opened lower on lower industrial output and weak dollar.[/R]
U.S. stocks turned flat after opening lower on Tuesday. Market sentiment was helped by a rise in home construction and a mild reading on consumer inflation, but a falling dollar and industrial output limited buying interest. The Federal Reserve said that industrial output dropped 0.2% in March as utility production fell 0.7%, offsetting a rise in factory production. Investors were also cautious ahead of a new batch of earnings reports. Nearly half of the Dow components release earnings this week.

Although analysts expect the reports to show slowing corporate growth, many companies posted stronger-than-anticipated financial results yesterday. On Tuesday, the Coca-Cola Co. ((KO)) posted Q1 profit increase of 14%, due to a double-digit increase in worldwide sales, beating estimates. The stock rose 1.7%. Another blue-chip stock, Johnson & Johnson ((JNJ)) reported a profit drop of 22% due to a charge for an acquisition that offset record sales. However, results beat estimates. Company''s shares advanced 2.6%.

The Nasdaq was dragged down by 7% drop in the shares of TD Ameritrade. The financial sector posted mixed earnings. Mellon Financial ((MEL)) and Wells Fargo & Co. ((WFC)) posted profits that exceeded expectations, while TD Ameritrade Holding ((AMTD)) said Q1 profits dropped and missed predictions. Wells Fargo & Co. added 0.5% after it said its Q1 profit rose 11% to 66 cents a share, compared to 60 cents a share a year ago on higher revenue. KeyCorp. ((KEY)) moved sharply lower, down 5.4%, despite better-than-forecast Q1 earnings. In the first hour of trading, the Dow was up 13.16, or 0.10%, at 12,733.62.The Standard & Poor''s 500 index was up 1.26, or 0.09%, at 1,469.73, and the Nasdaq composite index was down 2.12, or 0.08%, at 2,516.21. Bonds rose after the economic data was released, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note falling to 4.69% from 4.74%.


[R]9:30AM UK benchmark index trades lower Tuesday on inflation fears.[/R]
The UK benchmark was lower on Tuesday. By mid-day, the FTSE 100 eased 45.7 points to 6,470.5 in a broad-based decline.

Economic news

Consumer price inflation in March reached its highest level since comparable records began, forcing the sterling through the $2 barrier and resulting in Bank of England governor, having to write a letter of explanation to the chancellor concerning th government target of 2% inflation, which now seems an insourmountable task.

The sterling surged to $2.003 on the CPI date before pulling a back a little, but news of weaker than expected US inflation sent it back to $2.007 in early afternoon trading in London.

Advancers

Tesco was the biggest riser, up 1.4% to 462½p, after it reported record profits of more than £2.5bn and announcing plans to return around £3bn of its property divestment proceeds to shareholders. International Power is another gainer, up 1.7%, on talk of a bid from French conglomerate Suez. Drax is also higher, 1%, in sympathy.

Decliners

Hammerson, the property group, declined 3.9%, while Home Retail Group shed 2.5%. Experian Group dipped 2.7% as concerns over the outlook for the credit information group outweighed an increase in sales.

Mining stocks also suffered some profit taking, which reflected a weak session in Australia overnight. Vedanta Resources fell 2.2%. BHP Billiton also fell 0.7%.

Unlike Tesco, retailer Debenhams shed 12.1% after it announcing it expected profits for the year to be below current market expectations.

Broadband service provider Pipex, down 1.9%, is in the middle of a strategic review that could see it sold. The company more than doubled losses last year, but insisted nothing had been decided on its future and all options remain open.


[R]9:15AM Wall Street to open higher on tame inflation data and strong earnings.[/R]
U.S. stock futures rebounded on Tuesday, lifted by tame consumer inflation data, a higher-than-expected rise in housing starts and strong earnings repots from blue chip companies Coca-Cola and Johnson & Johnson. The closely watched CPI rose 0.6% in March, driven by big increases in the cost of gasoline and other energy products. Energy prices surged by 5.9%. Core inflation, which excludes volatile energy and food, posted 0.1%, the smallest increase in three months. According to another report, construction of new homes increased 0.8% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.518 million, vs. economist forecasts of 1.5 million. Building permits grew 0.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.544 million vs. expectations of 1.52 million.

Upbeat earnings news also generated positive market sentiment. Johnson & Johnson ((JNJ)) rose 2.6% after it said Q1 earnings fell from last year, but earnings excluding non-recurring items rose, and topped estimates. The Coca-Cola Co. ((KO)) advanced 1% after the world’s biggest beverage maker announced better-than-expected Q1 profit increase of 14%, contributed by a double-digit rise in sales. Among financial stocks, KeyCorp ((KEY)) said Q1 net income rose to 87 cents a share, from 70 cents a share a year ago, exceeding analyst forecast of 71 cents. The stock slipped slightly before the open. Mellon Financial ((MEL)) reported Q1 net income increase of 20% to 60 cents a share. Results included $8 million in expenses from its proposed Bank of New York ((BK)) merger and a $12 million litigation reserve charge. TD Ameritrade ((AMTD)) dropped 5.6% after the online broker reported Q1 disappointing earnings and lowered its outlook. S&P 500 futures erased earlier losses to rise 4.40 points to 1,479.80 and Nasdaq 100 futures hiked up 6.25 points to 1,854.50. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures climbed 41 points to 12,810.

[R]CPI rose 0.6% in March.[/R]
Tuesday morning, the Department of Labor released its closely watched report on consumer prices in the month of March. The report showed that consumer price growth came in line with economist estimates, while core prices rose slightly less than expected. The Labor Department said that its consumer price index rose 0.6 percent in March following an unrevised 0.4 percent increase in February. The increase came in line with economist estimates of a 0.6 percent increase in prices. With the increase in March, the consumer price index rose at its fastest pace since a matching 0.6 percent increase last April. A sharp rise in energy prices contributed to the increase by the consumer price index, with energy price surging up 5.9 percent in March after rising 0.9 percent in February. The index for petroleum-based energy rose 10.1 percent.

The increase in energy prices also contributed to higher transportation costs, which rose 2.8 percent in March after edging up 0.1 percent in the previous month. The report also showed that the core consumer price index, which excludes food and energy prices, edged up 0.1 percent in March after rising 0.2 percent in the previous month. Economists had expected core prices to match the 0.2 percent growth seen in February. A decrease in apparel prices helped to limit the increase in core prices, with apparel prices falling 1.0 percent in March after rising 0.5 percent in February. The Labor Department also said that consumer prices for the first three months of the year were up 4.7 percent year-over-year. Core consumer prices for the quarter rose at a much more modest annual rate of 2.3 percent.


[R]9:00AM Asian stocks ended mostly lower with Japan down on profit-taking.[/R]
Asian markets ended mostly lower on Tuesday. In Tokyo, the Nikkei lost 0.6% to 17,527.45. Among decliners, camera and office-equipment maker Canon shed 0.3%. Japanese exporters advanced as shares of Advantest gained 1.4%, while Elpida Memory was up 1.2%. Mitsui OSK Lines added 2.4% after reports that the marine transport company is likely to post a 1% rise in pretax profit to $1.5 billion for the business year which ended March 31, marking the fourth year in a row of record profits.

Hong Kong Hang Seng Index bucked the downtrend and advanced 0.2% to 20,788.61. Among decliners, mainland insurer China Life Insurance shed 3.1%, while wireless carrier China Mobile dipped 1%, after rising 5.7% in the previous session. Gainers included HSBC Holdings which rose 0.4%.

South Korean Kospi index closed down 0.2% at 1,528.66, retreating from a record intraday high of 1,538.89, while Chinese Shanghai Composite Index finished up 0.4% to 3,611.87, after setting an all-time high of 3,622.89. Other markets around the region also declined with Australian S&P/ASX 200 falling 0.2% to close at 6,186.50. Taiwan Weighted Price Index dipped 1.1% to end at 7959.29 and Singapore Straits Times Index slipped 0.2% to 3,420.15.


[R]8:15AM Coca-Cola reported 14% profit increase in Q1.[/R]
The Coca-Cola Co. ((KO)), the world''s biggest beverage maker, announced better-than-expected Q1 profit increase of 14%, contributed by a double-digit rise in sales. The company said it earned $1.26 billion, or 54 cents a share, compared to a profit of $1.11 billion, or 47 cents a share a year ago, beating analyst estimates of 53 cents a share. Excluding one-time items, Coca-Cola said it earned $1.29 billion, or 56 cents in the first quarter. Revenue rose 17% to $6.10 billion, compared to $5.23 billion in the same quarter a year ago. Coca-Cola said worldwide unit case volume reached the highest quarterly volume growth rate since 2002, up 6%. International unit case volume was up 9%, offsetting another poor performance for the company in its key North America segment, where unit case volume declined 3%. In pre-market trading, Coca-Cola shares rose nearly 1%.


[R]8:00AM NY-7:00PM Mumbai Sensex dips 89 points on a sell-off in IT stocks.[/R]
The Sensex on BSE finished 88.54 points, or 0.65%, lower at 13,607.04. The market-breadth was weak as there were almost three decliners for every two advancers.As 1,085 stocks advanced, 1,463 declined and 83 remained unchanged. Of the 30 stocks in the Sensex, 20 declined and the rest advanced. The turnover on BSE was Rs 4,547 crore, compared with Rs 4,144.83 crore. The turnover on NSE was Rs 9,611.56 crore, higher than Rs 8,950.85 crore on Monday.

Economic news

The rupee kept its upward trend and advanced further to 41.85/41.87 against the dollar following sustained portfolio inflows as the Reserve Bank of India abstained from intervention. The biggest dominant force on the rupee is the Reserve Bank and their activity in this market is going to determine how much the rupee appreciates from here on.

Global investment banking major Goldman Sachs on Tuesday said it would invest $1 billion over the next two years in the country for business expansion. The company is very bullish on India and wants to have all its businesses, including asset management, in the country over a period of time.

Earnings news

UTI Bank, private sector lender, has reported a net profit of Rs 211.89 crore for the quarter ended March 31, compared with Rs 151.73 crore in the year-ago period. Total income of the bank rose to Rs 1,667.87 crore for Q4 ended March 31, as compared to Rs 1,060.72 crore in the corresponding quarter in 2006.

Trading highlights

ICRA was the most-active stock with a turnover of Rs 926 crore followed by CESC and Reliance Industries.

Advancers

Bajaj Auto led the gainers, rallying 2.7% to Rs 2,548. The bike-maker soared from a low of Rs 2,460.20. Previously hammered cement large-caps staged a smart recovery on expectations of a strong performance from cement firms in the March 2007 quarter. ACC surged 2.5% to Rs 807, and Gujarat Ambuja gained 1.3% at Rs 114.

Index heavy Reliance Industries advanced over 1% to Rs 1,476. The stock had surged to an all-time high of Rs 1,487.80, in intra-day trade. Larsen & Toubro also advanced 0.6% to Rs 1,669. Larsen & Toubro will set up a boiler manufacturing facility along with Japan-based Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

Decliners

The surge of the rupee against the dollar is a cause of concern for IT companies, as it directly impacts their revenue and profits. IT stocks plunged today. Satyam lost nearly 5% to Rs 456. TCS shed over 2% to Rs 1,250, and Infosys and Wipro slipped also over 2% each to Rs 2,082 and Rs 574, respectively.

Other decliners included Tata Motors dropping 2.6% to Rs 730, Cipla slipping 2.3% to Rs 230, Maruti declining 2% to Rs 762, and ITC losing 1.6% to Rs 156.


[R]6:30AM European stocks slipped Tuesday on concerns over likely rate increases.[/R]
European markets declined on Tuesday. By midday, Frankfurt Xetra Dax shed 0.5% to 7,305.5, the CAC 40 in Paris lost 0.6% to 5,825.2 and London FTSE 100 slid 0.7% to 6,469.6. National benchmarks fell in 15 of 17 western European markets that were open.

Advancers

French carmaker Peugeot advanced 3.4% after Morgan Stanley upgraded the company from equal weight to overweight. ABN was itself 1% higher after reports the Dutch Bank would likely extend its period of merger talks beyond the informal deadline on Wednesday.

Tesco rose 0.9%. The U.K. biggest retailer reported a gain in full-year profit to 1.89 billion pounds, or $3.8 billion after the company expanded stores and sold more organic food and clothing.

Remy Cointreau rose 1.1%. The second-largest liquor maker in France said fourth-quarter sales increased 2.2% as the company sold more Remy Martin cognac and Charles Heidsieck champagne.

Decliners

Telecom Italia fell 2.3% after AT&T, the largest US telecoms operator, pulled out of talks with Pirelli about buying part of its stake in TI’s holding company Olimpia. Shares in Pirelli were down 3.1%.

Danone fell 2.3% after the French food producer had its price target reduced by ABN Amro, due to its dispute with Chinese joint venture partner Wahaha.

Merck retreated 2.1% after UBS lowered its recommendation for the German drugmaker to neutral from buy.

Oil and precious metals

Crude oil climbed in New York on speculation demand for fuel is rising ahead of the summer driving season. Crude oil for May delivery rose 54 cents, or 0.9%, to $64.15 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $64.07 in early trade in London. Brent crude oil for June settlement increased as much as 59 cents, or 0.9%, to $67.84 a barrel in electronic trading on the ICE Futures exchange.

Gold prices declined in London as some investors deemed excessive a rally that took the metal close to an 11-month high. Silver, platinum and palladium also dropped. Gold for immediate delivery in London fell $2.55, or 0.4%, to $687.65 an ounce. Silver for immediate delivery fell 5 cents, or 0.4%, to $14.00 an ounce. Platinum for immediate delivery fell $10.50, or 0.8%, to $1,268 an ounce, while palladium dropped $8, or 2.1%, to $371.50 an ounce.

Currencies

The British pound broke past $2 in European trading Tuesday morning for the first time since 1992 but the dollar gained some ground against the euro. The pound surged after official data showed consumer price inflation rose to 3.1% in the year ending in March, increasing the likelihood of another interest rate increase by the Bank of England next month. In early trade the pound had retreated to $1.9982, up from $1.9900 late Monday in New York. The euro traded at $1.3530, down from $1.3549. The dollar fetched 119.29 Japanese yen, down from 119.79.