Trump’s tax reform plans drag on markets

Poorly performing banks and concerns about US president Donald Trump’s tax reform plans dragged European markets down on Wednesday.

DUBLIN

Ingredients and food convenience food multinational, Kerry Group, climbed 1.92 per cent to close at €86.11 following an interim management statement for the nine months ended September 30th that was more upbeat than expected.

Chief executive Edmond Scanlon said that the group expected to grow earnings per share by between 4 per cent and 6 per cent this year, despite foreign exchange costs.

Better than expected third quarter profits at German rival Heidelberg Cement boosted Irish building materials giant, CRH. Its shares advanced 1.66 per cent to €31.215.

FTSE hits record high after Bank of England interest rate rise

---

Markets fall on US tax plan and UK rate hike

---

European shares retreat from two-year highs

---

Brexit may give Stock Exchange its tie-up ‘compelling reason’

---

Bookmaker Paddy Power Betfair gained 1.53 per cent as its sector regained popularity with investors following a difficult few weeks.

Airline Ryanair ticked up by 0.06 per cent to €17.11, outperforming European competitors such as Air France KLM and Aer Lingus owned IAG, whose shares all lost altitude on Wednesday.

LONDON

House builder Persimmon was one of the worst performers on the FTSE 100, falling 102p to 2,772p, after issuing a thinly detailed trading update suggesting the company experienced flat sales for the quarter.

Shares in Rolls-Royce Holdings fell 16.5p to 959.5p amid news that the UK Serious Fraud Office will continue to investigate individuals linked to the company after US authorities charged five people who allegedly bribed government officials to help the engineering giant secure a major contract.

Shares in department store Marks & Spencer shares rose 5.3p to 333.1p as it said it would further change its clothing and home arms to focus on the most successful locations, while attempting to increase online sales.

Airtricity owner SSE fell 12p to 1,398p as the energy firm and the German owner of Npower announced they had reached an agreement to merge their household energy supply and services business in Britain, turning the Big Six energy suppliers into five.

Eastern Europe focused airline Wizz Air fell 311p to 3,024p despite posting record interim results.

EUROPE

Italian bank Creval’s bid to raise cash to shed bad debts prompted investors to dump its domestic peers on fears that they too would seek fresh capital.

Shares in Creval plunged 30 per cent following the announcement of the share issue.

Banco BPM, Italy’s third-largest bank, and BPER Banca fell 7.5 per cent and 4.4 per cent respectively.

Also weighing was French bank Credit Agricole, which said weak trading had dented third-quarter profits, sending its shares down 3.6 per cent at the close.

Volkswagen retreated 2.2 per cent after a parliamentary committee said it had yet to fix one in three of the 1.2 million cars affected by the diesel emissions scandal in Britain.

Danish pharmaceutical firm Lundbeck fell 7.3 per cent as sales of its newer drugs, such as those to treat bipolar disorder and depression, undershot market expectations.

French gaming company Ubisoft touched a fresh record high after it beat its second-quarter sales target, boosting its shares by 9.2 per cent to lead gainers.

Cement maker Heidelberg gained 6.59 per cent to €90.36 after third quarter profits beat expectations and the group gave positive indications about the US.

The news boosted other players in the sector, including Italian rival, Buzzi, which added 1.97 per cent.

Airline Air France KLM was off 3.59 per cent at €11.68 amid poor sentiment towards the sector.

NEW YORK

The S&P and the Dow were flat in early afternoon trading on Wednesday as doubts over a Republican tax plan and the broader outlook for US growth hurt bank shares, while the Nasdaq was slightly higher.

Snapchat operator Snap fell 16.6 per cent in trading after China’s Tencent took a 12 per cent stake. The stock had fallen nearly 20 percent in premarket trading, a day after Snap reported much-slower-than expected advertising revenue and user growth.

Take-Two Interactive Software rose 11.2 per cent after the videogame maker gave a stronger-than-expected revenue forecast for the holiday quarter.

– Additional reporting: Reuters