European stocks are little changed after two-day Drop; ABB rises
By Bloomberg
European stocks were little changed after their biggest two-day decline in a month. U.S. index futures were also little changed, while Asian shares declined.
L'Oreal SA dropped 1.9 percent after a report that it sees lower-than-forecast market growth. Gamesa Corp. Tecnologica SA slipped 3.8 percent as it is raising funds through a share sale. ABB Ltd. climbed 2.3 percent after saying it will buy back shares for $4 billion. Telecom Italia SpA added 2.9 percent as America Movil SAB said it plans to enter talks to make a joint bid with Oi SA for the Italian company's wireless unit in Brazil.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index gained less than 0.1 percent to 346.18 at 8:07 a.m. in London. The benchmark gauge fell 0.4 percent yesterday as a YouGov Plc survey indicated for the first time that a majority of voters in Scotland favored breaking away from the U.K. Another poll showed today that 38 percent of respondents said they would vote Yes to independence in the Sept. 18 referendum, up from 32 percent, while 39 percent favored status quo.
Standard & Poor's 500 Index futures slid less than 0.1 percent today, and the MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 0.3 percent.
Smaller Growth
L'Oreal retreated 1.9 percent to 124.80 euros. The French company expects full-year market growth for cosmetics of 3.5 percent to 4 percent, Le Figaro reported, citing an interview with Chief Executive Officer Jean-Paul Agon. On Aug. 1, Agon had predicted growth of 3.5 percent to 4 percent for the second half of the year.
Gamesa declined 3.8 percent to 9.38 euros. The Spanish renewable energy company will issue as many as 25.4 million shares, equivalent to 9.99 percent of capital, according to terms of the deal. The shares are being offered at 9.15 euros to 9.35 euros each. The stock closed at 9.76 euros yesterday.
ABB advanced 2.3 percent to 21.95 Swiss francs. The world's biggest maker of power grids also said it will grow operational earnings per share by 10 percent to 15 percent on a compound annual basis between 2015 and 2020. It aims to boost comparable sales by 4 percent to 7 percent, the company said.
Telecom Italia added 2.9 percent to 91 euro cents amid bid talks for its Tim Participacoes SA unit. America Movil Chief Financial Officer Carlos Garcia-Moreno said his company is interested in holding talks to understand the proposal that Banco BTG Pactual SA is arranging. Oi hired the bank last month as a vehicle to acquire shares of Telecom Italia's Brazilian unit.