ROME: European stocks declined for a third day as sliding energy shares outweighed a rebound in tech companies.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dropped 0.4 percent to 395.63 at 10:25 a.m. in London. Tumbling media companies pulled European stocks down on Friday, while U.S.-payrolls data fueled bets the Federal Reserve will raise rates this year. Stocks gained 0.2 percent last week. Greece’s ASE Index extended its rebound to three days today, advancing 0.8 percent for the best performance among western-European markets.
“While the fall in commodity prices, especially oil, could help European markets in the medium term, on a first look it’s a bad sign for a cyclical upturn,” said Christian Zogg, a fund manager who helps oversee about $10 billion at LLB Asset Management in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. “The nearer we get to the first Fed move, the more nervous the market gets, but best guess is it will stay around the same level for the rest of the month. Earnings season is almost over, so there is not much to come from this side.”
BP Plc and Royal Dutch Shell Plc dragged energy stocks lower, losing at least 1.3 percent. Oil traded near the lowest level in almost five months in New York as a rebound in U.S. drilling signaled production is withstanding the slump in prices.
BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group led declines among miners, falling at least 1 percent as iron ore slid for a third day in China after trade and inflation data highlighted weakness in the world’s biggest steel producer.
Banks contributed the second-most to the Stoxx 600’s retreat, with HSBC Holdings Plc and Lloyds Banking Group Plc falling 1.6 percent.
