Euro Stoxx 50 Technicals

 | May 30, 2017 10:08AM ET

Higher political risks in Europe

The European stocks decline in price for the 4th consecutive day amid higher political risks in Italy, Greece and the United Kingdom. Will the decrease in the Euro Stoxx 50 index continue?

Early parliamentary elections are expected in Italy. They can be held simultaneously with the German elections in September this year. Greece again faces the default risk on government debts after postponing the negotiations with the IMF to mid-June. In Britain, the gap between the Conservative and Labor parties has narrowed ahead of the parliamentary elections next week. The STOXX 50 index rose for the fourth month in a row in May updating a nearly 2-year high. Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) lowered its recommendations on the European banks’ shares on this background, while JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) lowered its recommendations on automakers stocks. The current P/E ratio of STOXX 50 index is 21.8. This is markedly above the historical average of 14. High P/E ratio may indicate an overestimation of the index.