European stocks slip on US election concerns

Disappointing results from Shire and Standard Chartered and uncertainty over the US presidential election race dragged markets down on Tuesday.

DUBLIN Shares in two companies due to publish first-half results on Wednesday fell in Dublin. Food and ingredients specialist Glanbia tumbled 3.3 per cent to €14.35 from €14.84 while international packaging group Smurfit Kappa fell 2.1 per cent to close at €19.54.

Another food giant, Kerry Group, which is issuing an interim management statement on Wednesday, dipped 0.39 per cent to €65.88.

Financial trading software specialist First Derivatives climbed 2.92 per cent to €23.25 after reporting that its first-half profits rose 52 per cent to £7 million – it reports results in sterling – on the back of a 34 per cent jump in revenues to £72.4 million.

Ryanair gained 1.15 per cent to €12.74. Index heavyweight, CRH, shed 1.94 per cent to close at €29.09.

LONDON Standard Chartered dropped more than 5 per cent after boss Bill Winters admitted the bank's profits are "not yet acceptable". Shares in the Asian-focused bank slumped 38.6 pence sterling to 673.3p after it reported third-quarter underlying profits of $458 million.

Shires fell 2.6 per cent to 4,258p after reporting a drop in sales in haemophilia drugs.

Antofagasta rose 10p to 553p, but Anglo American pared morning gains to close down 7.5p at 1,123.5p.

Royal Dutch Shell raced ahead after it swung into profit in the third quarter as a cost-cutting and divestment programme began to bear fruit.

The oil giant said profits reached $1.4 billion dollars, compared with a $6.1 billion loss in the same period last year as the company also reaped the benefits of its acquisition of BG Group. Shares in Royal Dutch Shell were up nearly 4 per cent or 84p to 2,199p.

In contrast, rival BP took a tumble after it said profits nearly halved in the third quarter as it remained under pressure from low oil prices. The group posted underlying replacement cost profits – the benchmark industry measure – of $933 million for the three months to the end of September against $1.82 billion a year earlier. Shares were down more than 4 per cent or 21.7p to 462.1p.

EUROPE About half of the Stoxx Europe 600 Index's members have released quarterly results, and of those, 62 per cent have beaten profit estimates, according to strategists at JPMorgan Chase marking the best scorecard since the second quarter of 2015.

But despite upbeat news from Royal Dutch Shell and China on Tuesday, worse-than-estimated results at Shire and Standard Chartered dragged the equity gauge down 1.1 per cent to its lowest level since July 11 at the close of trading.

Since reaching a four-month high in September, stocks have struggled to break higher on concern over monetary-policy tightening, the efficacy of European Central Bank stimulus amid mixed economic data, and the US elections.

Pandora retreated 5.8 per cent after reporting a slowdown in sales at its jewellery stores, offsetting a boost to its full-year profitability target from declining costs for gold and silver.

Nokian Renkaat jumped 8.4 per cent after reporting an increase in margins at its passenger tyre business in the third quarter amid signs of stabilisation in Russia.

The volume of shares changing hands was about 13 per cent lower than the 30-day average amid holidays in Italy, France, Spain and Portugal.

Earnings remain in focus as equity valuations hold near long-term averages, with more than 70 Stoxx 600 companies scheduled to release results this week.

Analysts forecast a profit drop of 4.1 per cent for 2016, followed by double-digit growth in each of the next two years.

NEW YORK Wall Street sold off sharply on Tuesday, amid growing concern over the impending US presidential election and prospects for higher interest rates. Poll numbers indicating an increased chance of a Donald Trump victory have "roiled" the markets and prompted a sell off, according to asset managers.

In earnings news, Pfizer was down 2.7 per cent after the drugmaker trimmed its profit forecast.

Tronc fell 16.5 per cent after Gannett, the publisher of USA Today, said it had abandoned plans to buy the publisher of the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times. Gannett fell 1.4 per cent.

– (Additional reporting: Reuters)