PARIS/LONDON (dpa-AFX) – The EuroStoxx 50 (EURO STOXX 50) held steady on Monday at its highest level since 2001. But there wasn’t much movement after the leading index Eurozone On Friday it had overcome the 4,600 point mark for the first time in 23 years. At least it stayed above this threshold and ended the day with a minimal increase of 0.08 percent to 4639.36 points.
Investors are cautious given the generally high stock market levels, especially since the real estate crisis in China remains explosive and an end to the conflicts in the Middle East is not in sight. There are also numerous important economic data and events on the agenda this week, such as the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision on Wednesday or the labor market report from the world’s largest economy, the USA, on Friday. In addition, the reporting season is now gaining momentum in Europe.
At the country level, the most important indices – similar to the EuroStoxx – also barely moved. The German DAX (DAX 40) closed slightly weaker, as did the British FTSE 100, which fell by 0.03 percent to 7,632.74 points.
At the same time, the French CAC 40 rose by 0.09 percent to 7640.81 points and is again very close to its record high. It reached this point in mid-December at around 7,654 points.
While the real estate sector was particularly in demand across Europe, followed by stocks from the oil and gas sector, the telecommunications sector was the weakest.
Among the individual stocks, attention was focused on Philips, among others. The share lost 4.4 percent on Euronext in Amsterdam. The healthcare technology maker reported its fourth-quarter and full-year results, prompting Jefferies Research analyst Julien Dormois to make a critical note. He highlighted that incoming orders had declined for the sixth quarter in a row. Philips also announced it would suspend sales of sleep therapy ventilators in the United States. This comes after a settlement with US regulators over faulty medical devices.
Ryanair’s shares initially fell after quarterly figures on the Irish stock exchange. Ultimately, the stock went up by 3.8 percent, although Europe’s largest low-cost airline missed expectations and slightly lowered its target for surplus in the current financial year. Analyst Ruairi Cullinane from the Canadian bank RBC remained optimistic. He sees room for improvement in the airline’s forecasts.
Holcim shares rose by 4.7 percent in Switzerland. The fact that the US business of the construction group is to be listed on the stock exchange as a separate company caused price fantasies. On top of that, a new CEO was also appointed.
For ACS, on the other hand, sales in Spain fell by 10.0 percent. According to a report in the Spanish newspaper “El Economista”, a compensation payment from Spain to the infrastructure company Abertis, in which ACS has a stake, will be significantly lower than demanded. This is about a dispute on the AP-7 motorway. Contrary to the more than 4.3 billion euros demanded, the country’s highest court only granted Abertis a claim of 33 million euros.
Eutelsat Communications (Eutelsat CommunicationsAct), a small-cap stock on the Paris Stock Exchange, came under even greater pressure. The satellite network operator’s shares fell 14.5 percent after a lowered annual outlook./ck/jha/