Jitters keep European markets lower

Sentiment was looking tired in global stock markets at the end of a strong week as investors kept a wary watch on a fresh fall in oil prices and equities failed to progress after a solid set of economic data from China.

DUBLIN

The Irish index of shares fell 55 points as investors ended the week on a low note. Traders noted nerves creeping in during the day to sour sentiment throughout Europe.

Negative news stories took more prominence throughout the day, with analysts describing the markets as sliding rather than bouncing into the weekend.

Construction stocks came under pressure after European firm Zumptobel adjusted its forecasts, with concerns of a slowdown in Europe hampering sentiment, analysts said, causing a knock-on effect for Irish stocks.

CRH was 0.5 per cent lower at €25.665 by the close, while Kingspan was also under pressure, down 3.5 per cent by the end of the session to €21.59. Shares had slipped more than 4 per cent during the session before recovering some ground.

Bank of Ireland continued to struggle to break the 25 cent mark, with more sellers coming in throughout the session and weighing on the stock. The shares ended 3.2 per cent lower at just over 24 cent.

LONDON

British shares retreated as stagnation at the top end of the housing market, allied to persistent concerns about a possible British exit from the European Union, put pressure on housebuilders. The sector extended losses from the previous session, with

Berkeley Group

,

Barratt Developments

and

Taylor Wimpey

falling between 2.4 per cent and 3.8 per cent.

The FTSE 100 index was down 21.35 points, or 0.3 per cent, at 6,343.75 points by the close, broadly in line with the rest of the European market.

The index dipped from its highest close of the year, set on Thursday, but it remained up 2.3 per cent for the week, its biggest weekly rise since February.

InterContinental Hotels was also among the top fallers, dropping 2.3 per cent after investment bank JP Morgan cut its rating on the stock to "underweight" from "neutral".

EUROPE

European stocks snapped a five-day winning streak, trimming their weekly gain, as automakers led the Stoxx Europe 600 Index lower.

Volkswagen slid 2.3 per cent after data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association showed its share of the European market contracted to a five-year low. Daimler dropped 2.1 per cent.

Energy producers tumbled as oil fell for a third day before major suppliers meet in Doha to discuss an output freeze.

Anheuser-Busch InBev supported food-and-beverage companies, rising 1.6 per cent after agreeing to create a fund that will support the South African beer industry and protect jobs in the country to help seal approval for its proposed takeover of SABMiller.

Carrefour rose 3.9 per cent after France's largest retailer reported higher first-quarter revenue as growth in southern Europe and Latin America compensated for a drop in China.

NEW YORK

Wall Street was flat as investors digested US corporate earnings as well as data that pointed to a slow global economic recovery. The nervousness about tomorrow’s meeting of oil producers in Doha overshadowed positive Chinese data.

Citigroup followed other big banks in reporting a lower- than-expected fall in quarterly profit. Citi's shares were up 2.5 per cent, however, at $46.12.

By late morning in New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 0.05 per cent, the S&P 500 was down 0.1 per cent, and the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.07 per cent.

Shares of BATS Global Markets jumped 20 per cent to $22.80 after the exchange operator went public, the first non-healthcare IPO of 2016. 3D Systems was down 4.4 per cent at $17.48 after Citigroup cut its rating on the stock.– Additional reporting: Bloomberg, Reuters