European stocks close lower as euro zone falls into double-dip recession; Barclays down 7%
- The pan-European Stoxx 600 ended down more than 0.3%, with most sectors in negative territory and major bourses pointing in opposite directions.
- The euro zone’s gross domestic product fell 0.6% in the first quarter, according to preliminary data released by Europe’s statistics office Eurostat on Friday morning.
- It means that the bloc suffered a second technical recession in just over a year, although economists are hopeful of an economic recovery in the coming months.
(CNBC )/LONDON — European stocks closed lower on Friday after data showed a contraction in euro zone economic growth in the first quarter.
| TICKER | COMPANY | NAME | PRICE | CHANGE | %CHANGE | VOLUME |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .FTSE | FTSE 100 | FTSE | 6969.81 | 8.33 | 0.12 | 831625587 |
| .GDAXI | DAX | DAX | 15135.91 | -18.29 | -0.12 | 75194686 |
| .FCHI | CAC 40 Index | CAC | 6269.48 | -33.09 | -0.53 | 80057790 |
The pan-European Stoxx 600 ended down more than 0.3%, with most sectors in negative territory and major bourses pointing in opposite directions. Mining stocks led the losses, down 1.8%.
The euro zone’s gross domestic product fell 0.6% in the first quarter, according to preliminary data released by Europe’s statistics office Eurostat on Friday morning. It means that the bloc suffered a second technical recession in just over a year, although economists are hopeful of an economic recovery in the coming months.
Shares of U.K. bank Barclays dropped to the bottom of the European benchmark, down 7% after reporting first-quarter results. Barclays posted a net profit of £1.7 billion ($2.37 billion) for the first three months of the year, above the £1.3 billion expected by analysts.
French bank BNP Paribas closed almost 1% lower despite beating forecasts in its first-quarter results. It posted a net income of 1.8 billion euros versus the 1.2 billion euros estimated by analysts.
However, AstraZeneca climbed over 4% after the British pharmaceuticals giant said its coronavirus vaccine added $275 million in sales in the first quarter.
Meanwhile, the European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, said in a statement released Friday that technology giant Apple’s App Store had breached competition rules. This followed a complaint made by music streaming service Spotify in 2019 about Apple’s license agreements.
Stateside, major indexes fell on Friday, despite e-commerce giant Amazon reporting a record first-quarter profit. However, social media platform Twitter missed analyst forecasts on user growth expectations and shared lower-than-expected revenue guidance for the second quarter.
U.S. personal incomes and spending in March rose 21.1% and 4.2%, respectively, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Friday.
Asia-Pacific markets struggled for gains Friday, despite a positive finish stateside to Thursday’s trading session.
