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European Shares Seen Little Changed
[July 08, 2014]

European Shares Seen Little Changed


(dpa-AFX International Compact Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) VIENNA (dpa-AFX) - European stocks are seen opening largely unchanged on Tuesday following the previous session's sell-off. Amid a lack of fresh trading cues, investors may look forward to minutes of the Federal Reserve's June policy meeting due on Wednesday and speeches by several Fed officials later in the week for fresh clues on the direction of U.S. interest rates.



The U.S. earnings season kicks off later today, with Alcoa set to report its second-quarter financial results after the market close. Wells Fargo & Co. will publish its results on Friday while a slew of bank earnings from Dow components such as J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. are scheduled for release next week.

Closer home, the U.K. economy is still strong and moving in the right direction, the Quarterly Economic Survey from the British Chambers of Commerce showed. However, the Bank of England should avoid lifting interest rates amid increased risks to the U.K.'s prospects, the business group warned.


German trade balance data and reports on U.K. house prices, industrial production and June quarter GDP are slated for release later in the day.

Asian stocks are trading mostly lower as traders avoided taking large bets ahead of the U.S. earnings season. The yen strengthened against the dollar and euro on the back of upbeat trade and banking lending data and Samsung Electronics offered weaker-than-expected earnings guidance for the second quarter, dampening investor sentiment.

In domestic corporate news, cement makers Lafarge SA and Holcim announced that they would dispose some business as part of efforts to obtain approval for their $50 million merger.

Volkswagen has unveiled plans to build two new vehicle plants in China to expand its production capacity in that country.

Deutsche Lufthansa and Air China signed a new partnership deal, as the German aviation group pushes to enhance its position in China, the world's second largest aviation market.

French retailer Carrefour announced plans to close its five cash & carry stores in India, where it has operated since 2010.

Oil field services provider Technip SA has been awarded a new framework agreement by Statoil, Exxon Mobil and Gassco for diving, subsea intervention and repair contingency services.

The U.S. FDA has granted its special 'breakthrough' status for Novartis' CTL019 treatment, designed to treat relapsed or refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

German conglomerate Siemens AG is exploring a sale of its hospital database and information-technology unit that will enable the company to focus on its energy and industrial businesses, the Bloomberg reported.

The major European markets fell sharply on Monday after weaker-than-expected German industrial output data stoked fears of a slowdown in Europe's largest economy. The German DAX lost a percent, France's CAC 40 tumbled 1.4 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 slid 0.6 percent.

U.S. stocks fell overnight as investors looked ahead to the earnings season and pondered what a labor market recovery would mean for monetary policy. Trading activity remained somewhat subdued following the long holiday weekend. The Dow slipped 0.3 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq shed 0.8 percent and the S&P 500 dropped 0.4 percent.

Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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