European shares ended lower Friday as the euro hit an all-time high against the dollar after weak U.S. growth data, with oil producers leading the downturn. Spanish property stocks continued to decline. The U.K. FTSE 100 index declined 0.8 percent to 6,418.70, the German DAX Xetra 30 index lost 0.1 percent to 7,378.12 and the French CAC-40 index slipped 0.2 percent to 5,930.77, according to AP. «There's a bit of profit taking with investors repositioning away from possible bubble stocks and economies such as Spain,» said Andrew Lynch, a European fund manager at Schroder Investment Management. Spain's Ibex-35 index fell 1.4 percent to end at 14,403.60, with Grupo Immarcal dropping 2.3 percent in what has been a disastrous week for Spanish property and construction stocks. Lynch added that the currency market is having a bit of an impact on equities, with the euro continuing to trade over US$1.36 against the dollar, rising as high as US$1.3682 after the U.S. economic data. «This could put a crimp in earnings growth for exporters,» said Lynch. Of exporting autos companies, BMW shares lost 1.3 percent and Volkswagen shares slipped 0.8 percent. French automaker Peugeot, however, rose 0.9 percent after the company said late Thursday it will cut 4,800 jobs this year. It also reported improving revenue. Oil companies were lower, with Statoil down 2.3 percent after making a US$2 billion acquisition of a Canadian oil sands producer. BP dropped 1.7 percent and Royal Dutch Shell fell 1.3 percent. Brewer Scottish & Newcastle rose 6.8 percent as a fundraising move by Danish brewer Carlsberg sparked further deal hopes in the European brewing sector. Carlsberg finished flat. Dutch bank ABN Amro was up 1.2 percent after a consortium including Royal Bank of Scotland, Banco Santander and Fortis said they intend to launch an unsolicited bid for ABN Amro. Earlier in the week ABN Amro agreed to be bought by Barclays, shares of which rose 1 percent in London. Royal Bank of Scotland shares dipped 1.5 percent, Santander shares lost 2.4 percent and Fortis shares declined 1.7 percent. Banco Santander also said first-quarter net profit rose 20.7 percent, topping analyst forecasts due to strong growth in net interest income and fees. Shares in Deutsche Post climbed 5.3 percent and Deutsche Postbank rose 2.3 percent in Frankfurt, buoyed by takeover speculation. Infineon Technologies traded down 2.3 percent after Europe's second-largest chipmaker said its net loss narrowed in the second quarter. The results missed analysts' expectations as restructuring costs and lower sales ate into the bottom line. Dassault Systemes climbed 6.8 percent in Paris after the computer software company reported a 15 percent rise in revenue and raised its revenue goal for the year. Dutch staffing group Vedior rose 4.9 percent after the company said first-quarter profit rose 44 percent, which was stronger than expected, and as CEO Zach Miles will step down early. -- SPA
