By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European stock markets mostly moved
lower on Thursday, as investors stopped for a breather after major
indexes reached multiyear highs the prior day, largely ignoring
better-than-expected growth data from Japan.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index slipped 0.2% to 307.46, retreating
after climbing to the highest close since June 2008 on
Wednesday.
Shares of Compagnie Financiere Richemont SA rallied 7%, after
the luxury-goods firm posted full-year earnings ahead of
expectations and said it made a good start to the year.
Additionally, the company said Chairman Johann Rupert will take a
12-month sabbatical.
On a more downbeat note, shares of Zurich Insurance Group AG
lost 3.6%, after the company reported a 7% decline in first-quarter
profit, citing a "challenging economic environment."
Data out of Asia were also on investors' minds in Europe, after
Japan posted a 0.9% rise in first-quarter gross domestic product,
topping expectations of a 0.7% improvement quarter-on-quarter. The
faster rate of expansion was driven by higher household consumption
and exports, according to the government data.
Asia markets, however, were mixed, with Japanese stocks showing
weakness.
U.S. stock futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street, after
a record finish for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and the
S&P 500 index (SPX) on Wednesday.
Back in Europe, trade data for the euro zone showed exports rose
2.8% in March compared with February, while imports fell 1%.
Additionally, inflation for the region dropped to 1.2% in April
from 1.7% in March, with fuel and telecoms having the biggest
downward impacts.
Among notable movers, banks showed weakness. Shares of HSBC
Holdings PLC (HBC) slipped 0.2%, after Deutsche Bank cut the
banking giant to hold from buy.
Commerzbank AG dropped 2.8% in Frankfurt, partly erasing a 12%
jump from Wednesday, when the bank rallied after Germany's bank
rescue fund said it sold about 625 million euros ($805 million) of
Commerzbank shares to reduce its stake in the bank.
Among country-specific indexes, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 index gained
0.1% to 6,697.56, on track for an 11th-straight day of gains.
Shares of Aviva jumped 6.1%, after the insurance firm posted an
18% rise in the value of new business in the first quarter, helped
by a strong market in the U.K., France, Turkey and Asia.
Germany's DAX 30 index slipped 0.2% to 8,346.10, falling after
reaching an all-time high the prior day.
France's CAC 40 index lost 0.3% to 3,968.98.
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