Banking stocks down in Europe after further unrest in the US – Wel.nl

AMSTERDAM (ANP) – European banks ended negative on stock markets on Friday. The resurgence of unrest in the banking sector in the United States has caused a drop in investor confidence. American First Republic Bank has once again fallen on Wall Street and appears to be in need of a bailout from the authorities. ING fell 1.7% on the Damrak and was the biggest loser on the AEX. ABN AMRO also fell 0.6%.

Commerzbank lost 4.4% in Frankfurt and BNP Paribas fell 0.3% in Paris. NatWest fell 38% in London after the release of quarterly results. Customers withdrew 20 billion pounds (nearly 23 billion euros) of assets from the British bank in the last quarter. Barclays lost 1.3% in London.

In addition to the turmoil in the US, upcoming interest rate decisions also play a role. Next week, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Federal Reserve will consider whether interest rates need to rise further to curb inflation.

Disappointing growth

Investors also dealt with disappointing growth in the Eurozone economy. It rose 0.1% in the first quarter compared to the previous quarter, when growth of 0.2% was expected. Germany, the largest economy in the euro zone, also experienced stagnation.

The AEX closed 0.8% in the positive at 758.49 points. The MidKap gained 1.1% to 934.14 points. The Frankfurt, Paris and London stock exchanges gained up to 0.8%.

Unilever

Unilever continued its upward trend with a profit of 0.6%. On Thursday, the food group has already gained 1.7% after well-received sales figures. Randstad Temporary Labor Group gained 2.4% and topped the AEX. Chip company Besi (minus 1%) listed ex dividend. This means that a share no longer gives right to the dividend of the previous financial year.

Chip machine maker ASML gained 1.7%. Investors reacted to Intel’s quarterly results. The major US chipmaker, a major ASML customer, suffered a loss last quarter due to lower demand for computer chips. Intel expects a recovery in the second half.

More luxurious models

In Frankfurt, Mercedes-Benz increased by 0.7%. The German automaker managed to make more profit last quarter mainly by selling more luxurious models.

The euro was worth $1.1036 against $1.1024 the day before. A barrel of US oil costs 2.6% more at $76.71. Brent oil became 1.4% more expensive at $79.50 a barrel.