European shares lower on U.S. data; DAX flat
Published Mar 27, 2012 01:43PM ET
Near the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50 traded down 0.58%, France's CAC 40 fell 0.92%, while Germany’s DAX ended flat on the session. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 gave back 0.56%.
Stocks slipped after a report showed that U.S. consumer confidence dipped slightly in March but remained close to the previous month’s one-year high.
The Conference Board’s index of consumer confidence slipped down to 70.2 from 71.6 in February, but was better than expectations for a dip to 70.3.
Adding to the bearish sentiment, the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller U.S. house price index fell at an annualized rate of 3.8% in January from a year earlier resulted in additional selling.
U.S. home prices in December were revised to a decline of 4.1% from a previously reported 4.0% drop.
On Monday, stocks spiked higher as dovish comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke sparked speculation over the possibility of a third round of easing from the central bank.
In euro zone news, concerns over Spanish borrowing costs weighed ahead of the country’s budget statement on Friday, amid fears that the government will pull back on imposing harsh austerity measures despite a potential recession.
Meanwhile, a report earlier showed that an index of German consumer confidence fell unexpectedly in March.
After the close Monday, ECB President Mario Draghi stated that euro area governments need to take decisive measures to manage the debt crisis.
He stated, “ No single institution can carry the burden of addressing a set of challenges that are simultaneously economic, financial and fiscal. The current stabilization should not make us pause in our response.”
PZ Cussons plunged 9.8% due to Nigerian tensions resulting in underperformance of the company.
RBS climbed 3.3% after word of the U.K government selling back its stake to the lender.
Deutsche Lufthansa climbed 2.2% after J.P. Morgan raised its ranking of the company to overweight.
U.S. shares are mixed in mid session trade with the Dow down 0.09%, the S&P 500 higher by 0.04% and the Nasdaq climbing 0.15% on the day.
Investors are awaiting U.K. GDP, French GDP and U.S. durable goods numbers on Wednesday.
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Written By: Investing.com
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