Subprime Fears Drag Europe Lower

Ivaylo
18 Jul, 2007
New York City

Bid talk around supermarket chain J Sainsbury and stronger-than-expected net profit forecast from Heineken could not brighten sombre sentiment in Europe, arising from the re-emergence of worries about U.S. subpirme rates. Man Group and Tate & Lyle eased and tech stocks also disappointed after weak reports from Intel and Yahoo. All western markets were lower by mid-day.

[R]6:30AM European markets decline on concern over subprime mortgages, weak oil and tech sectors.[/R]

European markets were lower on Wednesday. All western markets were lower by mid-day. The U.K. FTSE 100 index slid 0.7% at 6,614.10, the German DAX index declined 1.4% at 7,925.48 as it struggled to hold the 8,000 level, and the French CAC-40 index shed 0.8% at 6,046.51. The German market led the decliners in the region.

In London, U.K. stocks fell, led by Man Group, the world largest publicly traded hedge fund manager, and Tate & Lyle, the maker of the sweetener Splenda. Rolls-Royce Group and Invensys were the worst performing stocks among companies dependent on U.S. sales as the pound gained for a fourth day against the dollar.

Man Group lost 1.9 percent. The company announced yesterday after market close that the net asset value of its Diversified Futures fund dropped 0.5% in the week to July 16.

Tate & Lyle slipped 1.6 percent. The company sold its European starch unit for a 20 million-pound, or $41 million, loss and added it expects profit from continuing operations to fall.

Rolls-Royce, aircraft-engine maker, fell 1.3 percent and Invensys declined 1.7 percent. The companies raise about a third of their revenue in the U.S.

J Sainsbury rose 1.7% after it announced it has received a preliminary approach from Qatari investment group Delta Two which could lead to a bid for the entire chain.

In Frankfurt, German benchmark DAX Index declined for a second day, led by DaimlerChrysler and Siemens. DaimlerChrysler, the world fifth-largest carmaker, lost 2.1 percent. Siemens, the largest engineering company in Europe, retreated 1.9 percent.

E.ON lost 1.5 percent. The largest utility in Germany said its Isar 2 nuclear reactor will remain halted for maintenance for longer than expected.

Infineon Technologies, the second-biggest maker of semiconductors in Europe, dropped 1.1 percent.

On other European markets, Dutch beer maker Heineken surged 5.3% after the firm doubled its comparable net profit forecast for the year to a range of 20% to 25%, on strong volume growth in several regions of the world.

[R]5:30AM Commodities mostly decline Tuesday with gold dipping on weakness in oil futures.[/R]

Gold settled slightly lower on the Nymex after following initially the U.S. dollar and later from oil prices. In early trading, gold advanced to $668 an ounce as the dollar lost against the euro. August gold lost 40 cents to settle at $665.90 on the Nymex. Silver for September delivery tracked gold lower and fell 4.7 cents to end at $13.018 an ounce.

Copper prices retreated as well as strike action seemed to fade, and the London Metal Exchange reported a second day of inventory inflows. Nymex copper for September delivery lost 9.5 cents to $3.5525 a pound.

Lead surged nearly 4% on the LME to another record high after the second-largest lead refiner in the world, Doe Run Co., posted sharp production reductions at a Missouri refinery that suffered an explosion on Friday.

Crude oil briefly reached an 11-month high on Tuesday per barrel, then lost as some investors took profits and gasoline futures also retreated. Oil prices gained further, hitting $75.35 on speculative buying. Crude reached its highest levels since August 2006.

Crude oil for August delivery closed the session down 13 cents to $74.02 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gasoline futures inched down 2.55 cents to settle at $2.1007 a gallon and August heating oil shed 2.24 cents to end at $2.0332 a gallon.

In Chicago, corn and soybeans lost further after futures for both stocks slid on Monday to the daily limit of 20 cents and 50 cents, respectively. Heavy rains in the Midwest were expected to shower the corn crop with the moisture needed during its important pollination period.

December corn lost 11.75 cents to end at $3.3675 a bushel, while November soybeans shed 38.25 cents to $8.605 a bushel.

Wheat prices rose initially, then dipped along with the other agricultural stocks 0.5 cent lower to $6.0125 a bushel.