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Bourses buckle at close
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May 5, 1999: 12:53 p.m. ET
Europe's big markets end sharply lower as Wall Street falters early
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LONDON (CNNfn) - Europe's major markets closed substantially lower Wednesday as an early slump on Wall Street cast a further pall over bourses that had been mired in the doldrums throughout the day. In many markets, consolidation was the catchword as investors eyed mixed corporate results and U.S. volatility warily.
After opening lower on the back of the Dow Jones industrials' overnight slide Tuesday, London's benchmark FTSE 100 nosed further into the red, sliding 2 percent, or 131.4 points to close at 6,401.7, with technology stocks taking the worst hit.
By the time the FTSE 100 closed, the Dow had plummeted 95 points. Shorn of the key Dow support, London blue chips could not fend off a further retreat from its record intraday high hit Tuesday. By the close, the index was nearly 4 percent, or 262 points, off that peak.
Frankfurt's Xetra Dax slid 82 points to 5,295.22, a decline of 1.5 percent. A first-quarter earnings report from Deutsche Bank (FDBK) showing a 36 percent jump in profit wasn't enough for some investors. The stock tumbled 2.4 percent to close at 54.35 euros.
France's CAC 40 fell even more, shedding 1.6 percent, or 70 points, to 4,368.17 as investors displayed extra caution after the Dow's early downturn. Tuesday, the CAC 40 hit an intraday lifetime high of 4,483.93, but Wednesday the index finished near its session low of 4,354.69.
Oil powerhouses Elf Aquitaine (PAQ) and Total (PFP) accounted for nearly half of the blue chip index's losses Wednesday, falling 5.04 percent and 6.15 percent, respectively. The slippage came despite signs of firming crude oil prices in recent days.
Glass maker Saint-Gobain, meanwhile, saw its shares give up 3 percent of their value to 155.1 euros amid disappointing first-quarter results.
The Swiss Market Index ended down nearly 1 percent, or 72 points, at 7,283.8
The real story in London was pay-TV operator BSkyB (BSY). Third-quarter results were in line with expectations, but investors lapped up the group's aggressive push in its digital TV operations, and plans to launch a free Internet access service. BSkyB stock surged 11 percent to 602 pence, casting a shadow over many of its competitors in the index.
The cable TV sector came under strong pressure, as investors worried the groups could suffer from BSkyB's renewed attack. Telewest (TWT) slid 5.7 percent to 258 pence, and Cable & Wireless Communications (CWZ), the listed cable subsidiary of telecom group Cable & Wireless [LSE:CW., slipped 3.28 percent to 869 pence.
Electronics retailer Dixons (DXNS), which pioneered free Web access in Britain, slumped 7.57 percent to 1,266 pence.
Other growth stocks in London also took a pummeling, as the market turned its attention to some recently overlooked sectors. Utilities stormed ahead, with ScottishPower (SPW) jumping 3.5 percent and water supplier Severn Trent (SVT) surging more than 4.7 percent to 873 pence.
Investors with an eye on Nasdaq's overnight tumble baled out of computer services groups Misys (MSY), down 8 percent, and Sema (SEM), down 7.5 percent at 552 pence.
Another casualty in Paris was tire maker Michelin (PML), which slid 3.4 percent to 42.40 euros after the European Commission took a dislike to the group's sales practices.
Chemicals giant Hoechst (FHOE) dropped 2.50 euros to 42.24 in Frankfurt, as doubts over its planned merger with France's Rhone-Poulenc (PRPP) resurfaced. In Paris, Rhone shares dipped nearly 2 percent to 44.90 euros.
In Switzerland, CS Group came under pressure along with fellow bank UBS. CS Group surrendered 15 Swiss francs to 291.50, and UBS fell 17 francs to 505. 
-- from staff and wire reports
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