European stocks mixed in wake of mass downgrade; DAX up 0.28%
Investing.com
Published Jan 16, 2012 03:53AM ET
During European morning trade, the EURO STOXX 50 edged up 0.06%, France’s CAC 40 declined 0.06%, while Germany’s DAX 30 rose 0.28%.
The ratings company downgraded France to AA+ from AAA with a negative outlook. S&P also cut ratings on Italy, Spain, Cyprus and Portugal by two notches and downgraded Malta, Slovakia and Slovenia by one level. Germany kept its triple-A rating.
French Finance Minister Francois Baroin said Friday that the loss of the triple-A rating was "not a catastrophe'' and stressed that France still had a solid AA+ rating.
European Central Bank policymaker Ewald Nowotny said on Sunday the central bank would do all it could to calm the situation after the downgrade.
Financial stocks led losses as shares in Germany’s Deutsche Bank slipped 0.10%, while French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale declined 0.54% and 1.18% respectively.
Peripheral lenders also added to losses with Italy’s Unicredit tumbling 1.99% while, Spanish BBVA and Banco Santander retreating 0.45% and 1.74%.
Meanwhile, Carnival Plc plunged 18.18% after its Costa Concordia cruise liner ran aground off Italy’s Tuscan coast, killing at least five people.
In London, FTSE 100 advanced 0.20%, after data showed that house price inflation declined 0.8% in January, after a 2.7% fall the previous month.
U.K. lenders tracked their European counterparts sharply lower as shares in Lloyds Banking plummets 2.78% and the Royal Bank of Scotland dropped 2.41%, while Barclays and HSBC Holdings plunged 2.42% and 0.53%.
Meanwhile, mining giants Bhp Billiton and Rio Tinto were also lower with shares dropping 0.60% and 0.60%, while copper producers Xstrata and Kazakhmys declined 0.66% and 1.05% respectively.
Also Monday, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi was to testify before the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, while markets in the U.S. were to remain closed for a national holiday.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Investing.com
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.