Level 2

Europe open: Slight losses ahead of Italian auction

Date: Thursday 14 Jun 2012

Europe open: Slight losses ahead of Italian auction

-Italian debt auction results awaited
-OPEC meeting on tap
-Credit Agricole could walk away from Greek subsidiary
-Nokia to lay-off 10,000 employees

FTSE-100: -0.35%
Dax-30: -0.26%
Cac-40: -0.20%
Stoxx 600: -0.37%
FTSE Mibtel: -0.04%
Ibex 35: 0.03%

The main European equity benchmarks have begun the session with only slight falls, despite rating agency Moody´s decision last night to axe Spain´s credit rating by three notches, all the way down to Baa3, on the brink of ‘junk’ level. Yet perhaps the worst news is that it may do so again in only three months depending on the actions which are undertaken by the country in the next few months.

Acting as a backdrop, Chancellor Angela Merkel is speaking in Berlin on what her objectives are for this next weekend´s meeting of G20 countries are. While she is defending the need for greater political union market commentary is pointing out that she does not seem to have budged much on her pro-fiscal consolidation stance, contrary to what some market reports had been suggesting last night.

Not to lose sight of either, Italy will this morning auction up to €4.75bn in medium and long-term debt.

From a sector stand-point the worst performance is now to be seen in the following industrial groups within the DJ Stoxx 600: media (-1.25%), automobiles (-1.03%) and technology (-0.97%).

Macroeconomic data on tap



Eurozone consumer price data scheduled for release at 10AM.

The European Central Bank (ECB) will publish its monthly bulletin at 9AM.

Germany´s wholesale price index fell by 0.7% month-on-month in May.

Slight gains for the single currency



The euro/dollar is more or less steady now, up by 0.03%, at 1.2570 dollars; that as investors await the results of this morning´s debt auction in Italy and ahead of this next weekend´s elections in Greece.

Front month Brent crude futures are down by 0.021 dollars at 97.11 dollar on the ICE.

AB

« Go back to news channel

..

Email this article to a friend

or share it with one of these popular networks:


Top of Page