Monday in the European markets started well with a boost from the technology sector. However, once news had filtered through of further potential terrorist attacks in the US, markets fell backwards. The CAC 40 in Paris closed up slightly for the day, following news from the general election. President Jacques Chirac emerged victorious. No such news from Germany though. The Xetra DAX managed to close down, just short of 1%.
Tuesday seemed to be guided by Nokia the telecommunications company. With revised second quarter financial news the company's shares fell around 9%. Most of the day was spent following the share by most European markets, especially in the recovery stages. By close of play the Xetra DAX was almost 2% higher. The CAC 40 in Paris was up over 2%.
Wednesday saw technology and telecommunications stocks take a downturn. Banking, oil and pharmaceutical stocks helped weigh the indices down. At the end of trading the Xetra DAX in Frankfurt was down by almost 2%. The CAC 40 in Paris fared worse, falling over 2.5%.
Thursday got off to a bad start after the large declines seen yesterday. To make matters worse, investors reacted badly to under performing US retail sales data. No joy of rising indices was seen today, leaving the Xetra DAX down by almost 1% and the CAC 40 down over 1%. News from the European Central Bank voiced fears over increases in inflation. However, they also said that no rise in interest rates would occur until the economic recovery was more stable.
Friday was no better for European markets with the trend pointing downwards. Following the last few days dismal trade, investors seemed to have had enough and sold, sold, sold. No stocks really escaped, pushing markets to eight month lows. By close of play the Xetra DAX was down over 3%, leaving a loss for the week of over 6%. The CAC 40 in Paris fared no better, losing almost 3% for the day and 4.5% for the week.