European blue-chip values slip back

Nikkei: 8,534.12 (-0.15%) Hang Seng: 21,136.43 (+0.65%) Shanghai Comp: 2,104.93 (+0.10%)

EUROPEAN BLUE-chip shares ended the week in negative territory, with weakness in commodity stocks outpacing gains in healthcare and consumer staples.

US stocks also fell yesterday after revenue from Wells Fargo disappointed investors, offsetting a jump in consumer sentiment to a five-year high.

Dublin’s Iseq index, however, bucked the global downward trend, finishing up, albeit marginally.

DUBLIN

THE ISEQ index outperformed its European peers rising almost 10 points or 0.3 per cent to close at 3,241.73

It was a good day on the Dublin market for pharma and biotechnology companies, with Icon rising 7.8 per cent to finish at €19.35 and Elan increasing 1.6 per cent to close at €8.58.

Independent News Media also gained, adding 11.1 per cent to €0.10, while drinks manufacturer CC increased 1.3 per cent to €3.80.

Total Produce gained 1.7 per cent to €0.48. The company appointed former KPMG senior partner Seamus Taafe as a new non-executive director.

Things didn’t go so well for index heavyweight CRH, which slid 1.35 per cent to €13.86, while packaging giant Smurfit Kappa was also down, losing 1.09 per cent to €8.16. The paper group is back on the acquisitions trail after five years of paying down debt, according to its chief executive.

Elsewhere, ferry operator Irish Continental Group also slid, falling 1.09 per cent to close at €18.10.

LONDON

UK STOCKS retreated the most in two weeks as commodity producers fell amid concern about Asian growth and Morgan Crucible cut its forecasts.

Rio Tinto Group, the world’s third-biggest mining company, dropped 1.6 per cent as Chinese bank lending missed projections.

Carbon manufacturer Morgan Crucible sank 11 per cent after saying trading conditions deteriorated across most regions in the third quarter.

Bodycote and IMI lost at least 2 per cent.

Travis Perkins declined 3.6 per cent even as the builders’ merchant said it is on track to meet estimates.

Standard Chartered and Axa climbed as Deutsche Bank raised its rating for the banking and insurance sectors.

The FTSE 100 Index fell 36.43 points, or 0.6 per cent, to 5,793.32 at the close in London. That was the biggest decrease since September 28 and extended this week’s decline to 1.3 per cent.

EUROPE

EUROPEAN STOCKS declined for the fourth time in five days as International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde said global growth is not fast enough to curb unemployment. Chinese new lending missed estimates, outweighing better than expected US consumer confidence data.

Akzo Nobel slid 6.1 per cent as chief executive officer Ton Buechner extended his leave from the company.

MAN fell 3.3 per cent to €75. The truckmaker controlled by Volkswagen AG said next year will be tougher than 2012 as orders in the third quarter fell more than normal for the season.

Lanxess, a German chemical maker, retreated 4.4 per cent to €60.21. Credit Suisse Group downgraded the stock to underperform, similar to a sell rating, from neutral.

Saipem, the Milan-based oil services contractor, declined 5.6 per cent to €35.21.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 0.5 per cent to 269.43 at the close of trading. The measure lost 1.7 per cent this week as the IMF cut its global growth forecasts and European Union leaders met to discuss the region’s debt crisis.

UNITED STATES

US STOCKS fell, erasing an early advance, as Wells Fargo’s shrinking profit margin and weakness in European markets overshadowed an escalation in consumer confidence to the highest level since the recession started.

The Standard and Poor’s 500 Index retreated 0.3 per cent to 1,428.33 at 12.36 pm in New York after climbing as much as 0.4 per cent.

Gasoline, wheat and nickel led losses in commodities.

Gasoline tumbled 2.7 per cent in New York, dropping for a second day.

Banks in the S&P 500 were down 3.2 per cent as a group, the biggest decline among 24 industries.

JPMorgan, the biggest US bank by assets, was down more than 1 per cent even after posting net income rose 34 per cent on gains from mortgages and trading. Wells Fargo tumbled 3.4 per cent.

Signs of a housing recovery prompted Wall Street firms to raise estimates for profit growth at banks to 21 per cent for the third quarter and 32 per cent in the fourth, the most of 10 SP 500 industries. – (Additional reporting: Bloomberg, Reuters)