European stocks close mixed after Wall Street bounce

European stock markets closed narrowly mixed yesterday, helped by a bounce on Wall Street as investors awaited the vote in a crucial Greek parliamentary debate on more tough austerity measures.

Dealers said approval in Athens of the latest spending cuts and tax hikes, expected later this week, would lift a major restraint by paving the way for a second Greek bailout and, hopefully, ending the acute stage of its debt crisis.

They said the betting is that the measures will get through but there is enough uncertainty to keep investors on their guard and reluctant to make any major commitments, leaving the markets to drift for the time being.

Banks were in focus since they could be among those having to carry the can for an extension of Greek debt while also facing additional capital requirements under new international rules.

In London, the benchmark FTSE 100 index of top shares closed up 0.43 per cent at 5,722.34 points. In Frankfurt, the DAX slipped 0.19 per cent to 7,107.90 points while in Paris the CAC 40 added 0.31 per cent to 3,796.55 points.

Other European markets showed a similar mix of losses and gains.

Events in Greece grabbed all the attention as parliament began debate on the austerity measures and French President Nicolas Sarkozy declared in Paris: “We won’t let Greece fall. We will defend the euro. It’s in all of our interests.”

Private banks, owed billions of euros by Greece, meanwhile held talks in Rome with EU officials on how the country’s debt could be extended with without causing a default which would threaten the eurozone and global markets.

Central bank governors also met at the weekend to look at ways of preventing banks causing a repeat of the 2008 global financial crisis, mainly recommending that additional capital is required to cover their systemic risk. “The market is going to be nervous until the (Greek) vote ... No one wants to take any risks and the tone is volatile,” said Frederic Rozier at Meeschaert in Paris.

In New York, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.73 per cent at around 1600 GMT while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.01 per cent.

Dealers said the gains looked technical and trade was choppy, with investors following the story in Athens.

“With the uncertainty of the Greek vote, trading conditions are apt to be choppy and most likely accented by low volume,” said Patrick O’Hare of Briefing.com.

US May consumer spending data was little changed, giving the market no lead.

In Asian trade earlier yesterday, Tokyo lost 1.04 per cent and Hong Kong dropped 0.59 per cent but Shanghai gained 0.44 per cent while Sydney was off 1.01 per cent.