On Tuesday European stocks were mixed, with
most markets struggling for direction as fears over Greece’s bailout
negotiations continued to weigh.
The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.3% to 397.94, boosted by British shares.
The U.K.’s FTSE 100 index put on 0.4% to 7,010.94 after being closed
for the Early May Bank Holiday on Monday, when other European markets posted solid gains on the back of some better-than-expected euro zone manufacturing data.
Germany’s DAX 30 index slid 0.1% to 11,607.30, while France’s CAC 40 index fell 0.1% to 5,077.16.
Greece’s Athex Composite Index slid 3.3% to 798.76 on Tuesday, while the yield on 10-year Greek government bonds climbed 50 basis points to 10.93%.
On Tuesday Greece’s debt crisis was the central topic for markets, as the anti-austerity government continued to negotiate with its eurozone lenders. Next week Athens is facing a 750-million-euro debt repayment to the International Monetary Fund, but there are fears it will run out of cash unless it reaches a deal with creditors to unlock the next tranche of bailout money.
On Tuesday Austrian Finance Minister Hans Joerg Schelling told in an interview that progress is being made, but that it remains unclear whether an agreement will be struck in time for the eurozone finance ministers’ meeting on Monday.
The negotiations have been going on since Greece and its lenders
agreed on a bailout extension in February. The two sides are
struggling to agree on which reform measures the country must undertake
to receive the next portion of aid.
One of the creditors, the IMF, fears Greece’s debt burden is becoming unsustainable again, and it has warned it may withhold bailout money unless the eurozone agrees to debt relief, the Financial Times reported Monday. Eurozone officials have categorically ruled out a write-down on Greece’s debt.
