Foreign Stock Roundup: Statoil Buys Oil Field Stakes For $1.45B, Shell Resumes Dividend Payment
Zacks Investment Research | Dec 04, 2017 09:20PM ET
A selloff in tech stocks and a crucial U.S. tax legislation dominated proceedings for Europe’s bourses last week. Asia’s stocks remained mixed even as investors largely ignored North Korea’s latest missile launch. Concerns surrounding pension reforms continued to weigh on Brazil’s stocks while Chile’s investors remained apprehensive about upcoming presidential elections.
Tech Selloff Weighs on Europe’s Stocks, Investors Focus on U.S. Tax Bill
Stocks across Europe closed in the red last Monday, weighed down by a selloff in tech and financial services stocks. The STOXX 600 declined by 0.5% even as Europe’s banking index closed the day 0.7% lower. Tech stocks were the worst sufferers of the day, declining by 0.7%.
Comments from the Fed Chair and news related to individual stocks dominated proceedings on last Tuesday even as Europe’s stocks finished in the green. The STOXX 600 added 0.6% with only basic resources stocks closing the day with losses. The FTSE 100, CAC 40 and the DAX gained 1%, 0.6% and 0.5%, respectively. Oil and gas stocks emerged as the day’s strongest gainers.
Stocks across Europe closed with gains on last Wednesday after progress on Brexit negotiations and a new U.S. tax law lifted investor sentiment. The STOXX 600 added 0.3%, with nearly all sectors finishing in the green. Retail stocks were the top gainers of the day, increasing by 1.7%.
The STOXX 600 lost 0.3% on last Thursday as gains made on Wall Street and a hike in oil prices failed to boost Europe’s stocks. The FTSE 100 declined by 0.9% after the sterling notched up gains versus the dollar. Meanwhile, the CAC 40 and the DAX lost 0.5% and 0.3%, respectively. Such losses continued into Friday, with the STOXX 600 declining by 0.7% on last Friday. The FTSE 100, DAX and CAC 40 lost 0.4%, 1% and 1.3%, respectively.
Stocks across Europe ultimately rebounded on Monday, buoyed by news that the U.S. Senate had approved crucial tax legislation. The STOX 600 advanced by 0.9% with all its sectors except technology ending in the black.
Asia’s Stocks Remain Mixed, Investors Ignore North Korea’s Missile Test
Stocks across Asia closed in the red last Monday even though Wall Street had closed a week with strong gains. The Nikkei 225 declined by 0.2%, losing out on early gains. The Kospi lost 1.4% weighed down by tech stocks while the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.1%. China’s bourses remained weighed down by events in the bond market. The Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Composite declined by 0.9% and 1.6%, respectively.
A mixed finish on Wall Street a night earlier led Asian stocks to end mixed last Tuesday. The Nikkei slipped by 0.04% following a volatile trading session, even as defense stocks notched up gains. The Kospi added 0.3% even though tech stocks continued to suffer. However, the S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.1% after telecom stocks weighed on the index. The Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Composite gained 0.3% and 1.4%, respectively.
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Asia’s investors chose to ignore North Korea’s latest missile launch on last Wednesday. The Nikkei gained 0.5% while the Kospi lost only 0.1%. The S&P/ASX 200 advanced by 0.5%. China’s markets overcame early reverses to end the day with gains. The Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Composite added 0.1% and 0.04%, respectively. However, the CSI 300 lost 0.1%.
Stocks across Asia closed last Thursday with losses even as oil prices moved higher. The region’s tech stocks also remained weighed down following the sector’s Wall Street sell off a day earlier. The Nikkei 225 gained 0.6% while the Kospi declined by 1.5%. Losses made by tech, materials and banking stocks dragged the S&P/ASX 200 0.7% lower.
China’s official PMI index came in at 51.8 in November, exceeding most estimates. However, the Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Composite lost 0.6% and 0.9%, respectively.
Last Friday, Asia’s stocks closed the day mostly mixed. By the first hour of trading, the ASX 200 moved above 6,000, gaining 0.3%. The Nikkei 225 and the Topix gained 0.4% and 0.3%, respectively. The Kospi ended marginally lower while the Shanghai Composite closed mostly unchanged. Stocks across Asia closed mixed on Monday after the U.S. Senate passed a crucial tax legislation.
Concerns Surrounding Social Security Reforms Hurt Bovespa
On last Monday, Brazil’s stocks declined following concerns that the Temer administration would have to soften its stance on pension reforms in order to receive Congress’ approval. The Bovespa declined by 0.1%, weighed down by such large caps as Vale (NYSE:VALE) and Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD) . The Bovespa rebounded last Tuesday, gaining 0.1%.
Last Wednesday, the Bovespa lost 1.9%, weighed down by the likes of Itau Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) as investors remained concerned about the prospects of pension reforms. The Bovespa declined by 1.6% last Thursday as investor sentiment continued to remain low. Also, Chile’s blue-chip IPSA index lost 0.6% on concerns surrounding the presidential election to be held on Dec 19.
The Bovespa lost only 0.1% last Friday as investors hurried to buy on the dip following the benchmark’s near 3% decline over the last three sessions. Ultimately, the Bovespa rebounded on Monday, gaining 0.6%, after China’s government mandated steel production cuts, boosting shares of mining companies like Vale.
Stocks in the News
BlackBerry Ltd. (NYSE:BB) has lost a payment dispute with Nokia (HE:NOKIA) Corp. (NOK) due to which, the former will pay approximately $137 million to the latter.
Per The International Court of Arbitration, BlackBerry has failed to make certain payments to Nokia under a patent license contract. Consequently on Nov 29, the arbitration panel had ruled in favor of Nokia.
Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) BlackBerry will record a GAAP charge on its results. Nokia has already realized a major portion of the amount.
Meanwhile, BlackBerry is pursuing a separate patent infringement complaint against Nokia in the United States and Germany. The smartphone maker claims that Nokia infringed on Zacks Investment Research
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