European stocks little changed after having best week since February
On Monday European stocks were little changed, after posting their best weekly gain since February, as investors considered the implications of a possible increase in U.S. interest rates after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said a hike is likely in the coming months.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slipped less than 0.1 percent to 349.54 at 10:35 a.m. in London. The number of shares changing hands on the gauge was about 69 percent lower than the 30-day average. Financial markets in the U.S. and U.K. are shut for holidays.
Yellen said late Friday that an improving American economy would probably warrant another increase in borrowing costs “in the coming months,” a view also recently expressed by several regional Fed chiefs. She was speaking after data showed U.S. growth picked up more in the first quarter than was previously estimated.
European stocks last week capped their longest streak of weekly gains since March and are 0.3 percent away from an April 20 high. Still, investors continued to pull money out of the region’s funds, bringing the total withdrawals to $39 billion in 16 weeks, according to a Bank of America Corp. note citing EPFR Global data.
After starting the year with bullish calls, strategists and analysts have become increasingly skeptical about European equities, projecting flat annual returns in the Stoxx 600 and a decline in corporate profits. Following a mixed earnings season, European investors are facing a referendum on Britain’s membership in the European Union and a general election in Spain.
Gold fell for a ninth day, its longest losing streak in a year, and the dollar strengthened after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said an interest-rate hike is likely in coming months. Japanese shares led gains in Asia.
This article was compiled by Valletta Fund Management Limited, a member of the BOV Group.Valletta Fund Management,TG Complex, Suite 2, Level 3, Brewery Str., Mriehel BKR 3000 Freephone: 80072344. E-mail: infovfm@bov.com. Website: www.vfm.com.mt. Valletta Fund Management Limited is licensed by the MFSA.