- Title: FRANCE: European shares fall
- Date: 6th February 2010
- Summary: VARIOUS OF TRADING ROOM OF MONTSEGUR FINANCE, A PARIS TRADING HOUSE VARIOUS TRADING ROOM, DEALERS LOOKING AT SCREENS (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRANCOIS CHOLET, CO-DIRECTOR OF MONTSEGUR FINANCE, SAYING: "This is indeed a crisis of confidence in the euro that is being manifested by a defiance of some investors with regard to certain countries. It is concentrated on Greece and the countries of southern Europe such as Spain and Portugal, where in the last week we've seen tensions over the levels of government bonds. (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRANCOIS CHOLET, CO-DIRECTOR OF MONTSEGUR FINANCE, SAYING: "We're in a situation for companies; it's a worry in the short term. But in the medium to long term, a stronger dollar will be a good signal. It will make exports easier and it shows the American economy is improving. VARIOUS DEALING ROOM
- Embargoed: 20th February 2010 22:16
- Keywords:
- Location: France
- Country: France
- Topics: Economic News
- Reuters ID: LVA29U9O7DS49UP4VKI2APK95PEZ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: European shares fell by midday on Friday (February 5) on investors' worries about the eurozone sovereign debt problems and on nervousness ahead of key U.S. jobs data, with banks the major fallers.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was down 2.1 percent at 972.39 points after touching 970.33 -- the lowest since early November of last year.
"This is indeed a crisis of confidence in the euro that is being manifested by a defiance of some investors with regard to certain countries," said Francois Cholet, co-director of Montsegur Finance in Paris.
"It is concentrated on Greece and the countries of southern Europe such as Spain and Portugal, where we've seen in the last week tensions over the levels of government bonds."
The cost of insuring Greek, Portuguese and Spanish government debt against default shot up to record highs and benchmark German Bunds rose sharply.
Banks took the most points off the index. Banco Santander, Barclays, BNP Paribas and Credit Suisse fell 2.1 to 3.7 percent.
Across Europe, the FTSE 100 index lost 1.8 percent, France's CAC 40 fell 2.5 percent, Germany's DAX dropped 1.5 percent, Spain's IBEX 35 shed 2.4 percent, Greek stocks slipped 3.9 percent, and Portugal's PSI 200 fell 3.8 percent.
Energy stocks were among the worst performers. British gas producer BG Group lost 4.7 percent after its fourth-quarter earnings, excluding non operations, missed expectations. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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