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BASF reverses Euro gains
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June 21, 2001: 9:56 a.m. ET
Chemical sector reverses Europe tech gains
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LONDON (CNN) - A profit warning from Germany's BASF dragged chemical stocks down in afternoon trading Thursday, dragging Europe's main bourses down.
Earlier, technology stocks shone in the wake of the tech-laden U.S. Nasdaq composite closing nearly 2 percent higher, and lifted the indices.
But the European chemical sector fell more than 3 percent after BASF (FBAS), Europe's biggest chemical company, issued a profit warning and said it would close factories, as global economic growth slows. BASF shares fell 4.1 percent and rival Bayer (FBAY) lost 4.3 percent.
Frankfurt's electronically traded Xetra Dax dropped 0.2 percent to 5,866.87.
One the tech side, Deutsche Telekom (FDTE), led the gainers, rising 4.5 percent on news it had agreed a deal to sell six of its cable TV subsidiaries to U.S. consortium Liberty Media.
Siemens' (FSIE) electronic component Epcos (FEPC) rose more than 2 percent and Europe's biggest software company SAP (FSAP) rose to just under 1 percent
London's FTSE 100 edged off 0.1 percent to 5,693.9, with Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) leading the losers, down 4.8 percent.
The world's biggest advertising company, WPP Group (WPP) rose 2.8 percent after the world's biggest media company AOL Time Warner (AOL: Research, Estimates), forecast advertising revenues would pick up.
But software company Sage Group (SGE) rose 2.5 percent and Europe's biggest chip designer ARM Holdings (ARM) was 2.5 percent.
In Paris, the CAC 40 blue chip index dropped 0.4 percent to 5,147.9. Information technology consultant Cap Gemini Ernst & Young[ PAR:PCAP] led those in decline, dropping 3.9 percent.
In Amsterdam the AEX index rose 0.7 percent and the SMI in Zurich slipped 0.4 percent higher. Milan's MIB30 rose 0.7 percent.
The pan-European FTSE Eurotop 300, a broader index of the region's largest stocks, was up 0.2 percent, with the chemical sector slipped 3 percent.
U.S. stocks began Thursday's session little changed as investors trying to build on the previous session's gains sifted through another round of discouraging news on corporate sales and profits. One piece of economic data offered a little optimism when the government said the number of Americans filing for jobless benefits fell sharply last week.
In early trading, the Nasdaq composite index dropped 4.26 to 2,026.88 while the Dow Jones industrial average dipped 24.84 to 10,622.49. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was 1.19 lower at 1,221.95.
In the currency market, the euro rose edged down against the dollar, at 85.27 after closing at 85.46 on Wednesday. 
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