ROME: European stocks fell Friday, set to lock in sizable losses for the week, as investors stayed cautious ahead of Sunday’s referendum over Greece’s bailout.
The Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, -0.34% fell 0.3% to 383.93, with no sectors trading higher. The pan-European index is facing a 3.2% drop for the week, on track for its sharpest weekly pullback since early May.
The week is ending much as it began, with uncertainty about what’s next for Greece. Voters in the country on Sunday will be asked whether to accept the terms of a bailout agreement set out by its lenders. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras late Thursday urged a “no” vote, saying a rejection will bolster his chances of quickly securing a better deal. Read: Know this about Sunday’s Greek referendum.
“As for Sunday, the feeling is the risks are skewed to the downside” for the euro, Simon Smith, chief economist at FXPro wrote in a note Friday. “A rejection of the proposals would put Greece on course for an exit from the single currency. An acceptance would open up the doors for negotiation, but we have to remember that the proposal is also effectively null and void in itself, so it would be back to the drawing board.”
The euro EURUSD, +0.2616% was buying $1.1108, versus $1.1086 late Thursday in New York.
On the country indexes, Germany’s DAX DAX, -0.23% lost 0.3% to 11,066.12, and France’s CAC 40 PX1, -0.49% fell 0.5% to 4,811.85. The DAX and the CAC are facing weekly declines of 3.8% and 5%, respectively.
Portugal’s PSI 20 PSI20, -1.02% was shoved 1.3% lower to 5,544.88, and Spain’s IBEX 35 IBEX, -0.53% gave up 0.7% to 10,770.60, heading for weekly declines of about 5% each. Italy’s FTSE MIB FTSEMIB, -0.17% dropped 0.3% to 22,554.94 on Friday, on track for a 5.3% weekly fall.
