Monday in Europe had little direction with the US markets closed for the Memorial Day holiday. Despite everything, European indices managed gains for the day after positive economic data from Germany, indicating recovery for Europe. The Xetra DAX in Frankfurt rose by almost 1% on the back of the news, even after a bomb scare in the afternoon. The good news filtered through to Paris and the CAC 40 closed up by 0.5%.Tuesday saw
US markets reopened but poor consumer spending figures dampened European investor sentiments. As with the rest of the World, banking and oil stocks were in the news and helped most indices to a lower close. By close of play the Xetra DAX in Frankfurt was down just over 1% and the CAC 40 managed a drop of 0.5%.
Wednesday was another low day for European markets on the back of telecommunication and technology stocks. Despite heavier falls during the day, most markets managed to pull back by the close, leaving the Xetra DAX down by almost 1% and the CAC 40 just below the day’s starting level.
Thursday saw technology and telecommunication stocks encourage markets to head south for another day. Although markets came back from lows during the trading day the CAC 40 and Xetra DAX both managed closes around the 2% down mark. Trading was not helped by news from the European Commission as they reduced their growth expectations for Gross Domestic Product in the European economy. Investors appeared to take the negative vibe, despite GDP increasing in the first quarter by 0.2%.
Friday was more upbeat in terms of trading with positive economic data released from the US. The start of the World Cup also seemed to put investors in positive spirits. By close of play the CAC 40 in Paris was up just short of 0.5% whilst the Xetra DAX stormed ahead and added 1.2% to the index.