European stocks slump further on Fed fears
LONDON, June 24, 2013 (AFP) - Europe's main stock markets slumped further on Monday, hit by concern over the withdrawal of US Federal Reserve stimulus and the emergence of a liquidity crisis in China, dealers said.
London's benchmark FTSE 100 index sank 1.30 percent to 6,036.77 points in afternoon deals, Frankfurt's DAX 30 shed 1.23 percent to 7,693.43 points and in Paris the CAC 40 lost 1.55 percent to 3,601.50 points.
Madrid's IBEX 35 index dove 2.15 percent and Milan's FTSE Mib slumped 1.02 percent, as both indices were hit also by rising Italian and Spanish state borrowing costs on the bond market, traders said.
A sharp fall in bank shares pushed the Portuguese market down about 3.0 percent.
The European single currency slid to $1.3080 from $1.3122 late in New York on Friday.
"Market shudder, caused by the withdrawal of QE in sight as hinted by Fed last week, has not really disappeared," said Gekko Markets analyst Anita Paluch.
"The sentiment is very fragile -- which shows how addicted the markets are from the easy money."
Against such a backdrop, the yield on long-term US Treasuries soared to 2.61 percent, their highest level since August 2011 -- in turn pushing eurozone bond yields sharply higher as well, dealers said.
"It looks like we may be in for another volatile week as investors come to terms with a global economy with tapering central bank support," said Mike McCudden, head of derivatives at online broker Interactive Investor.
Global equities had already slumped last week after the Fed signalled it may begin winding down its massive bond-buying policy, known as quantitative easing (QE).
Asian markets also fell sharply on Monday, extending last week's falls, as the Chinese liquidity crisis also shook sentiment.
"The Fed's imminent tapering of QE is front of mind for many, but the effect is being compounded by a reported liquidity squeeze in China," McCudden told AFP.
In Asia, Chinese investors have been sent running by a crisis in the banking system, which has caused lenders to put the brakes on loans.
The rates banks charge to borrow from each other has surged in the past two weeks but the People's Bank of China has refrained from injecting more cash -- owing to fears about a growth of bad debt -- which has in turn weighed on the economy.
Prospects that Beijing would step in to provide money were dashed at the weekend when a commentary by the official Xinhua news agency said there was no shortage of funds in the financial system.
-- London market shrugs off takeover news --
In reaction, Shanghai stocks slumped 5.30 percent to 1,963.24 points -- below the psychological 2,000 level. Hong Kong lost 2.22 percent to end at 19,813.98 points.
In Sydney, where a number of listed firms rely heavily on trade with China, the market closed down 1.47 percent, while Seoul skidded 1.31 percent lower.
Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo slid 1.26 percent to finish at 13,062.78 points. The losses reversed a 1.42-percent gain at the start of Monday's session that had been stoked by a solid victory for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling coalition in elections ahead of national upper house polls next month.
US stocks followed global markets lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbling 0.90 percent after five minutes of trading.
The broad-based S&P 500 sank 1.22 percent, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 1.16 percent.
In Europe, shares in Frankfurt dropped despite news of rising German business confidence in June, according to the Ifo economic institute's closely watched business climate index.
And stock market investors in London shrugged off major takeover news.
Mobile phone giant Vodafone launched a 7.7-billion-euro ($10.1-billion) cash offer for Kabel Deutschland, Germany's biggest cable operator, on Monday.
Vodafone's share price soared following the news but later stood flat at 175.85 pence.
And in the mining sector, the founders of Eurasian Natural Resources Corp and the Kazakh government launched a takeover bid valuing London-listed ENRC at £3.04 billion ($4.67 billion, 3.57 billion euros).
In reaction, the share price of ENRC -- one of Central Asia's largest miners -- rallied 0.51 percent to 218 pence.
Eurasian Resources Group, a newly-formed consortium, said in a statement that it had offered to buy full control of ENRC after rival miner Kazakhmys agreed to sell its 26-percent stake.
However, the news sent Kazakhmys shares tumbling 8.31 percent to 247.00 pence in London trade.
On the London Bullion Market, gold eased to $1,283.25 an ounce, from $1.295.25 late on Friday, when it had hit the lowest level since mid-September 2010.
- Dow Jones Newswires contributed to this report -
London's benchmark FTSE 100 index sank 1.30 percent to 6,036.77 points in afternoon deals, Frankfurt's DAX 30 shed 1.23 percent to 7,693.43 points and in Paris the CAC 40 lost 1.55 percent to 3,601.50 points.
Madrid's IBEX 35 index dove 2.15 percent and Milan's FTSE Mib slumped 1.02 percent, as both indices were hit also by rising Italian and Spanish state borrowing costs on the bond market, traders said.
A sharp fall in bank shares pushed the Portuguese market down about 3.0 percent.
The European single currency slid to $1.3080 from $1.3122 late in New York on Friday.
"Market shudder, caused by the withdrawal of QE in sight as hinted by Fed last week, has not really disappeared," said Gekko Markets analyst Anita Paluch.
"The sentiment is very fragile -- which shows how addicted the markets are from the easy money."
Against such a backdrop, the yield on long-term US Treasuries soared to 2.61 percent, their highest level since August 2011 -- in turn pushing eurozone bond yields sharply higher as well, dealers said.
"It looks like we may be in for another volatile week as investors come to terms with a global economy with tapering central bank support," said Mike McCudden, head of derivatives at online broker Interactive Investor.
Global equities had already slumped last week after the Fed signalled it may begin winding down its massive bond-buying policy, known as quantitative easing (QE).
Asian markets also fell sharply on Monday, extending last week's falls, as the Chinese liquidity crisis also shook sentiment.
"The Fed's imminent tapering of QE is front of mind for many, but the effect is being compounded by a reported liquidity squeeze in China," McCudden told AFP.
In Asia, Chinese investors have been sent running by a crisis in the banking system, which has caused lenders to put the brakes on loans.
The rates banks charge to borrow from each other has surged in the past two weeks but the People's Bank of China has refrained from injecting more cash -- owing to fears about a growth of bad debt -- which has in turn weighed on the economy.
Prospects that Beijing would step in to provide money were dashed at the weekend when a commentary by the official Xinhua news agency said there was no shortage of funds in the financial system.
-- London market shrugs off takeover news --
In reaction, Shanghai stocks slumped 5.30 percent to 1,963.24 points -- below the psychological 2,000 level. Hong Kong lost 2.22 percent to end at 19,813.98 points.
In Sydney, where a number of listed firms rely heavily on trade with China, the market closed down 1.47 percent, while Seoul skidded 1.31 percent lower.
Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo slid 1.26 percent to finish at 13,062.78 points. The losses reversed a 1.42-percent gain at the start of Monday's session that had been stoked by a solid victory for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling coalition in elections ahead of national upper house polls next month.
US stocks followed global markets lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbling 0.90 percent after five minutes of trading.
The broad-based S&P 500 sank 1.22 percent, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 1.16 percent.
In Europe, shares in Frankfurt dropped despite news of rising German business confidence in June, according to the Ifo economic institute's closely watched business climate index.
And stock market investors in London shrugged off major takeover news.
Mobile phone giant Vodafone launched a 7.7-billion-euro ($10.1-billion) cash offer for Kabel Deutschland, Germany's biggest cable operator, on Monday.
Vodafone's share price soared following the news but later stood flat at 175.85 pence.
And in the mining sector, the founders of Eurasian Natural Resources Corp and the Kazakh government launched a takeover bid valuing London-listed ENRC at £3.04 billion ($4.67 billion, 3.57 billion euros).
In reaction, the share price of ENRC -- one of Central Asia's largest miners -- rallied 0.51 percent to 218 pence.
Eurasian Resources Group, a newly-formed consortium, said in a statement that it had offered to buy full control of ENRC after rival miner Kazakhmys agreed to sell its 26-percent stake.
However, the news sent Kazakhmys shares tumbling 8.31 percent to 247.00 pence in London trade.
On the London Bullion Market, gold eased to $1,283.25 an ounce, from $1.295.25 late on Friday, when it had hit the lowest level since mid-September 2010.
- Dow Jones Newswires contributed to this report -
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