The stock markets in the United Stated declined due to concerns regarding signs of financial problems in Portugal, which ignited demand for haven assets. Investors resumed a selloff of their stockholding in companies listed in the S&P 500 today, according to Bloomberg.
Commenting on the movement of the stock markets, Larence Creatura, a fund manager at Federated Investors said, “People will shoot first and ask questions later. The concern of an event like this is always determining whetherit’s occurring in isolation or whether it’s the first domino. It’s a classic flight to safety across the equity, commodities and bond markets.”
Investors are concern regarding suspicions that the main holding company of Banco Espirito Santo SA (ELI:BES), the largest bank in Portugal in terms of capitalization concealed as much as €1.3 billion hole in its accounts. Authorities in Luxembourg are investigating allegations that Espirito Santo International (ESI) covered up the whole in its accounts.
Barclays Bourse manager Murail commented, “Portugal is clearly fuelling the decline in the market, which has already been hit by profit taking. Investors are questioning the strength of BES and the impact it can have on the whole country.”
Yesterday, the stock markets in the United States put a break on a two-day selloff as investors were optimistic regarding corporate earnings and the improvement of the labor market in the country.
U.S. Markets
- Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA)- 16,915.39 (-0.41%)
- S&P 500- 1,964.70 (-0.41%)
- NASDAQ- 4,396.20 (-0.52%)
- Russell 2000- 1,163.48 (-0.88%)
European Markets
- EURO STOXX 50 Price EUR- 3,150.59 (-1.64%)
- FTSE 100 Index- 6,672.37 (-0.68%)
- Deutsche Borse AG German Stock Index DAX- 9,659.13 (-1.52%)
Asia-Pacific Markets
- Nikkei 225- 15,216.47 (-0.56%)
- Hong Kong Hang Seng Index- 23,238.99 (+0.27%)
- Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 Index- 2,142.85(-0.27%)
Stocks in Focus
The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) declined 1.65% to $79.40 per share after Michael Baker, an analyst at Deutsche Bank AG (USA) (NYSE:DB) lowered his earnings estimate for the company from $1.45 to $1.44 per share. Baker maintained his Hold rating and price target of $85 per share.
The stock price of L Brands Inc (NYSE:LB) dropped 2.67% to $60.21 per share after reporting a quarterly sales of $1.18 billion, up 2%. Its sales results missed the estimates of Wall Street analysts who expected a 3% increase for the June quarter. L Brands is the parent company of Victoria’s Secret and Bath and Body Works
The shares of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) gained 1.51% to $48.64 per share after its CEO Lowell McAdam said the company is not interested in acquiring a satellite company during an interview with CNBC.
