Markets held back by Greek uncertainty

US stocks fell from near records, while European equities retreated as concern mounted that Greece may not reach a deal with creditors. The dollar strengthened to a 12-year high against the yen.

French and German delegates at a meeting of G7 finance chiefs in Dresden pushed back against Greek claims that an agreement over bailout funds was near. Traders said the crisis would continue to send markets back and forth until the real crunch time arrived.

DUBLIN

The Dáil voted by 74 votes to 51 in favour of selling the Government's 25.1 per cent stake in Aer Lingus to bidder IAG, and offer documents will issue shortly. Once one lands in the offices of Ryanair, that airline will begin the process that will see it making its intentions clear in relation to its 29.8 per cent.

Aer Lingus ended the day at €2.44, a rise of 0.37 per cent. Ryanair ended the day at €11.83, a rise of 0.68 per cent. The Iseq index of Irish shares closed at 6,362.13, a fall of 0.12 per cent.

Bank of Ireland ended at €0.35, down 1.11 per cent, while CRH closed at €25.81, a fall of 0.5 per cent.

LONDON

Britain's equities were little changed, closing at an almost three-week high. Sports Direct International gained 4.2 per cent after announcing pretax earnings ahead of expectations.

Kingfisher rose 2.2 per cent as retail profit was in line with estimates. ARM Holdings climbed 2.6 per cent with semiconductors advancing after Avago Technologies agreed to buy Broadcom. Tate & Lyle dropped 2.4 per cent after saying 2016 pretax earnings would be similar to this year's.

The FTSE 100 Index added 0.1 per cent to 7,040.92, reversing a decline of as much as 0.4 per cent. It jumped the most since May 8th on Wednesday, erasing a Monday slump.

Among other stocks that fell, BT Group dropped 2 per cent after Raymond James Financial lowered its rating on the stock.

The UK’s gross domestic product grew 0.3 per cent in the first quarter, matching an initial estimate, the Office for National Statistics said.

EUROPE

European shares retreated, as lingering uncertainty over Greece’s debt problems held back the region’s stock markets.

European equities had rallied on Wednesday on reports of a staff-level agreement between Greece and its creditors, until German finance minister Wolfgang Schäuble said not much progress had been made.

Athens’s benchmark ATG equity index closed down 1.7 per cent, underperforming a 0.5 per cent decline on the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index. The ATG is up 1.4 per cent since the start of 2015, compared with an 18 per cent gain for the FTSEurofirst.

Swedish tech firm Fingerprint Cards surged nearly 20 per cent, as traders speculated that a Google event would highlight growing interest in fingerprint recognition technology.

NEW YORK

US stocks fell, with benchmark indexes trimming their best monthly gains since February. Energy shares declined with crude oil, and railroads led a drop among transportation companies.

Caterpillar fell 2.3 per cent. Broadcom slipped 2.6 per cent as Avago agreed to buy the wireless chipmaker for $37 billion in cash and stock. Broadcom jumped 22 per cent Wednesday on reports a deal was imminent.

Abercrombie & Fitch soared amid signs of improvement at its Hollister chain.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index dropped 0.4 per cent to 2,115.27 at 1:17pm in New York, after rising 0.9 per cent Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 74.54 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 18,088.45.

Data showed jobless claims increased by 7,000, but remained below 300,000 for the 12th straight week. – (Additional reporting, Bloomberg)