By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European stocks darted between gains and
losses Friday, and moved toward a decline for the week during which
concerns about euro-zone growth were underscored.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index shed less than 1 point at 341.84. It
was poised for a 1.6% fall for the week, which would be the biggest
weekly pullback since mid-April, according to FactSet data.
A run of lackluster data from the euro zone continued Friday
with France's government saying growth in gross domestic product
stalled in the first quarter and inflation in Spain was flat this
month, highlighting worries about the risk of deflation.
Meanwhile, a European Commission survey found there was a
decline in confidence in the region among businesses and households
in June. The dampened sentiment prevailed even as the European
Central Bank this month launched measures aimed at staving off
sharply low levels of inflation and reviving economic growth. The
commission's Economic Sentiment Indicator fell to 102.0 from 102.6
in May, falling short of the expected rise to 103.0 in a Wall
Street Journal poll of economists.
Among stock movers, Ophir Energy dropped 8%, the worst price
performer on the Stoxx 600 following a ratings downgrade to neutral
from buy at UBS. The British oil exploration company on Thursday
issued a disappointing update about a dry well in offshore
Gabon.
Shares of Barclays PLC (BCS) were up 1.1% after the shares on
Thursday dropped 6.5% to a 19-month low on U.S. legal problems.
Barclays Chief Executive Antony Jenkins said in a staff memo
Thursday that the bank will conduct an internal probe following
accusations of fraud in a lawsuit filed by the New York Attorney
General, according to reports.
Late Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reported that major
brokers are closing their connections to a dark pool run by
Barclays in the wake of the lawsuit, according to people familiar
with the matter.
Also gaining was Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC . The shares picked up
1.6% after a Reuters report that Airbus Group is near a decision to
upgrade its A330 aircraft with engines made by Rolls-Royce.
Among country indexes, U.K.'s FTSE 100 index rose 0.2% to 6,749,
France's CAC 40 index rose 0.1% to 4,442, and Germany's DAX 30
equity index edged up 0.1% to 9,818.
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