Miners, commodity strains weigh on Europe markets

World stock markets mostly retreated yesterday, dragged lower by mining shares and oil prices, while Apple weighed on Wall Street, traders said.
After declines for the bulk of Asia’s stock markets, Europe’s top indices closed down, as dealers also digested a slew of company earnings reports in Europe and the US.
One of the heaviest fallers on London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index was miner Antofagasta, which shed 3.2% to close at 523 pence.
London’s FTSE 100 was down 0.9% at 6,958.09 points, Frankfurt’s DAX 30 lost 0.4% at 10,709.68 and CAC 40 was down 0.1% at 4,534.59 at close yesterday.
David Cheetham, market analyst at XTB trading group, said shares in the copper mining company fell “after the release of a downbeat production update”.
“The release warned that the firm’s output will be close to the lower end of its predicted range at the end of the year and has clearly worried investors.”
In Asian trading hours, energy firms were hit by sinking oil prices as fears that a planned output cut by major producers will unravel were fanned by a report Russia would not take part.
Crude had been in the ascendancy since last month when the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, and later Moscow, agreed to output cuts in a bid to support prices.
But oil prices fell more than 1% Tuesday as the Russia-based Interfax news agency said the country’s envoy at Opec, Vladimir Voronkov, had said output cuts are not “an option for us”.
oil prices fell again yesterday, with better-than-expected US energy inventory data proving insufficient to reassure markets.
The report comes days after key Opec member Iraq said it should be exempted from the final deal as it was fighting a war against the Islamic State group.
“They say talk is cheap and Opec appears to be approaching the limits of its ability to jawbone oil higher without something concrete to put on the table,” Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at OANDA, said in a note.
US equities recovered after falling at opening, when Apple – the world’s biggest company by market capitalisation – fell 4% after posting an earnings decline due to falling iPhone sales.
Apple earnings plunged 19% in the fourth quarter to $9bn, overshadowing better-than-expected results from Boeing and food giant Mondelez.
“Domestic stocks are recovering from an early drop, with crude oil relinquishing solid losses following bullish government oil inventory data, while services sector activity improved more than expected,” analysts at Charles Schwab said in a note to investors.
“However, Dow member Apple’s guidance for the holiday quarter is weighing on its shares, and a read on new home sales missed expectations,” they added.