Date: Friday 18 Jun 2010
Mainland European shares were mixed at trading’s close on a quiet day for company news.France’s Sanofi-Aventis fell on rumours that Lantus, the pharma giant’s key drug, could raise the risk of cancer in diabetics.
"The risk for cancer in subjects with diabetes has been the matter of extensive scientific debate for decades. Available evidence remains inconclusive," the group said in a statement.
Germany’s Bayer and Swiss firm Roche also slipped.
Across the markets, the Dax in Frankfurt fell 6 points to 6,216, while the Cac in Paris dropped rose 4 to 3,687. The Swiss market dropped 28 points to 6,447.
Elsewhere, European governments agreed on Thursday to publish the results of stress tests on the region’s 25 most systemically important banks in July to shore up investor confidence. EU President Herman Van Rompuy also said Thursday’s one-day summit had shown that the bloc had “a shared sense of economic direction”.
Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero said: “These tests must be demanding. We need to look at the most stringent tests possible in terms of our growth because that will favour our credibility. There is nothing better than transparency to demonstrate solvency, to give confidence and to leave behind us all these unfounded rumours.”
Banking shares seem to welcome the news, with Societe Generale, Credit Agricole, BNP Paribas and Commerzbank all among the best performers.
Elsewhere in the sector, Spain’s Santander has confirmed that it has entered a bid for about 300 high street branches being sold by the Royal Bank of Scotland.
The banking giant didn’t comment on any financial details, but market speculation earlier this week suggests a deal could be worth about £1.8bn. Santander, which is rumoured to be the only bidder, said it is not possible to say when the tender process will conclude.
Elsewhere on the economic front, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the head of the International Monetary Fund, is in Spain today to meet the government over its finances.Meanwhile, US politicians attacked BP chief Tony Hayward yesterday, accusing the oil man of ignoring the risks his company was taking drilling a mile down in the Gulf of Mexico.
No comments:
Post a Comment