Europe stocks head for worst quarterly drop since 2012 on Greece
By Bloomberg
European stocks fell for a second day as investors weighed Greece’s ability to meet a payment amid an expiry of its bailout package.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dropped 0.2 percent to 385.27 at 1:50 p.m. in London, taking its second-quarter loss to 3 percent. Greece is set to withhold a $1.7 billion payment due to the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday, when its euro-area aid package also runs out. Equities tumbled on Monday after Greece called for a July 5 referendum on creditor demands, shut its banks and imposed capital controls.
Stocks began paring a drop of as much as 1.4 percent on Tuesday after an official said European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker set out details to Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on how his country can reach an accord. Shares then almost erased declines after German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble was said to tell lawmakers Greece would stay in the euro for the time being if voters reject austerity.
“Who would have thought that Greece would even get to this stage?” said Ben Kumar, who helps oversee about $14 billion at Seven Investment Management in London. “Today should have been about putting the finishing touches on photos of Tsipras and creditors signing a deal. Instead, we have to wait out this week with more uncertainty. I miss the first quarter when stock moves made fundamental sense. Now we’re just back to risk off or risk on. It’s just annoying.”
Quarterly Moves
A rally spurred by the European Central Bank’s quantitative-easing measures has been held hostage by the Greek crisis. The Stoxx 600’s losses since its best first quarter since 1998 have trimmed first-half gains to 12 percent. It’s poised for the worst month in two years.
Germany’s DAX Index rose 0.2 percent, paring its quarterly loss to 7.2 percent. That’s still the biggest decline since 2012 and among the worst performances in 24 developed markets.
American depositary receipts of National Bank of Greece SA rose 11 percent in premarket New York trading, after plummeting 24 percent on Monday. The Global X FTSE Greece 20 ETF added 3.8 percent, also rebounding from a slump. The Athens Stock Exchange is closed until July 6.
Commodity producers declined the most among 19 Stoxx 600 groups. Antofagasta Plc and BHP Billiton Ltd. dropped 1.5 percent each.
LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE and Tod’s SpA lost more than 1.3 percent after Bank of America Corp. cut its rating on the luxury-goods shares to underperform, similar to sell. Christian Dior SE, also downgraded by the brokerage, declined 3.6 percent.4
K+S AG climbed 2.7 percent after Handelsblatt reported Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc.’s offer of more than 40 euros a share for the German peer was too low. A bid of 50 euros apiece was a fairer valuation, it cited people familiar with the matter as saying. Imagination Technologies Group Plc gained 2.3 percent after saying full-year revenue rose.
Here we are to serve you with news right now. It does not cost much, but worth your attention.
Choose to support open, independent, quality journalism and subscribe on a monthly basis.
By subscribing to our online newspaper, you can have full digital access to all news, analysis, and much more.
You can also follow AzerNEWS on Twitter @AzerNewsAz or Facebook @AzerNewsNewspaper
Thank you!