Banking stocks post losses, led by Intesa Sanpaolo
By Polya Lesova, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) — European markets swung between gains and losses early Thursday, with shares of Hennes & Mauritz AB falling sharply after the clothing retailer reported a decline in profit.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index (ST:STOXX600 278.07, -0.48, -0.17%) slipped 0.1% to 278.2 in morning trading.
The biggest decliner in the index was H&M (SE:HMB 208.20, -8.40, -3.88%) , whose shares slumped nearly 4%. The retailer said its first-quarter net profit fell 30%.
In France, the CAC 40 index (FR:PX1 4,017, -7.92, -0.20%) was little changed at 4,021.8. The biggest gainer was car maker Renault SA (FR:RNO 39.28, +0.55, +1.42%) , which rose 1.4%.
Meanwhile, shares of nuclear-reactor maker Areva SA (FR:CEI 31.35, 0.00, 0.00%) were suspended on Euronext pending an announcement.
Germany’s DAX 30 index (DX:DAX 7,061, +3.63, +0.05%) edged up 0.1% at 7,064.15, as shares of drug firm Bayer AG (DE:BAYN 55.20, +0.61, +1.12%) advanced 1.3%.
Financial stocks were lower, led by Italian banks. Intesa Sanpaolo SpA (IT:ISP 2.12, -0.07, -3.02%) dropped 2.5% and UniCredit SpA (IT:UCG 1.77, -0.04, -2.10%) fell 1.8%. France’s Societe Generale (FR:GLE 46.68, -0.80, -1.69%) slipped 1.6%.
In London, the FTSE 100 (UK:UKX 5,951, +3.03, +0.05%) was nearly flat at 5,952, with miner Vedanta Resources PLC (UK:VED 2,363, +50.00, +2.16%) rising 2.1%. |
