Greece and weak earnings take toll

Financial Times
May 13, 2011

European stocks slipped back over the week as nervousness over a worsening in Greece’s debt crisis combined with lacklustre earnings reports to keep equity bulls on the defensive.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 index lost 0.4 per cent to 1,140.53 on Friday, pushing the continent’s benchmark into negative territory by the same percentage over the five trading days.

Shares of National Bank of Greece highlighted the volatility towards eurozone peripheral assets after the downgrade of the nation’s sovereign debt by Standard & Poor’s.

The bank had losses in excess of 4 per cent on both Monday and Thursday but ended the week just 2.2 per cent lower at €4.81 after a successful midweek auction of Treasury bills.

Fears over Greek debt also weighed on the wider banking sector, particularly on those with the biggest holdings of Greek bonds.

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