By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
European stocks fell Thursday and moved toward a monthly loss,
as investors weighed a rise in the euro and concerns about slowing
global growth.
The Stoxx Europe 600 fell 0.2% to 396.46, led by declines in
technology, health care and mining shares. The pullback was the
benchmark's third in a row, with Wednesday's 2.2% selloff
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/european-stocks-gain-as-corporate-results-roll-in-fed-in-focus-2015-04-29)
underpinned by U.S. data that showed meager growth in the world's
largest economy in the first quarter.
"Confidence certainly seems to have been shaken up, with a few
unknowns impacting investors," said IG Market Strategist Stan Shamu
in a note Thursday. There was "an unprecedented QE program by the
U.S. and, judging by the way data is going, the economy isn't quite
able to stand on its own two feet yet."
The Stoxx 600 was on track for a 0.2% decline in April, which
would be the first monthly loss since December.
Data: Eurozone inflation rose to 0% in April
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/eurozone-consumer-prices-steady-after-declines-2015-04-30)
from negative 0.1% in March. Inflation expectations are watched by
the European Central Bank in setting its monetary policy,
especially in connection with its quantitative-easing program.
German jobless claims in April were down 8,000
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/german-jobless-claims-fall-by-less-than-expected-2015-04-30)
from March, less than the decline of 13,000 forecast in a Wall
Street Journal poll of economists.
Euro: The euro (EURUSD) came off intraday highs above $1.12,
recently trading at $1.118. But the euro still held to gains
against the U.S. dollar, as investors appeared to shrug off the
Federal Reserve's statement late Wednesday that suggested it's
keeping its options open on interest rates
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dollar-hits-3-week-low-against-euro-ahead-of-gdp-fed-statement-2015-04-29).
Many analysts, however, think the Fed will hold off on an
interest-rate hike at least until September.
The euro on Wednesday posted its best day against the dollar in
six weeks, a move that contributed to a 3.2% slide in Germany's DAX
30 . On Thursday, the DAX rose 0.1% to 11,450.56.
Corporates: Among stock movers, French steel-pipe maker
Vallourec SA was the worst performer on the Stoxx 600, with shares
tumbling 15%. The sharpest decline in nearly three years came after
the company late Wednesday swung to a first-quarter loss of EUR76
million
(http://www.wsj.com/articles/vallourec-swings-to-loss-cuts-jobs-1430333521)($84.4
million), and revenue fell more than 17%, under pressure as demand
from energy companies softens. Standard & Poor's downgraded
Vallourec's credit rating late Wednesday.
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