Lisbon’s stocks down mid-morning with EDP losing over 1.8%

Lisbon’s stock exchange was trading down on Monday compared with the previous session, with EDP and Sonae Capital leading the losses, falling 1.83% to €3.12 per share and 1.75% to €3.12 per share, respectively.

At around 9.15 am in Lisbon, the main stock index, the PSI20, was down 0.49% to 5,332.87 points, with eight stocks down and 10 up on Friday’s trading.

In addition to EDP and Sonae Capital ‘s shares, EDP Renováveis’ and Ibersol’s were also falling, by 0.97% to €8.655 and 0.85% to €9.32 per share.

Early on Monday EDP issued a statement with the Portuguese Securities and Exchange Commission (CMVM), which noted that the Capital Group has reduced its stake in the company, from almost 10% to 2.958% of its share capital.

Sonae SGPS shares were falling 0.17% to €0.881 after the company announced on Friday that the Spanish branch of its subsidiary Modelo Continente Hipermercados reached an agreement with Corpfin Capital to buy 60% of Tomenider SL.

Tomenider SL owns 100% of Arenal Perfumarias, a pharmacy and perfumery retailer with a chain of 41 stores in the north of Spain, generating a turnover of €97 million in 2017.

The total estimated value of the stake is around €45 million.

Shares of Semapa and Ramada Investimentos e Indústria were rising most on Monday morning, up 0.93% to €17.28 and 0.50% to €10.00, respectively.

In Europe, the main exchanges were rising on Monday morning, but investors are focused on the rise in the price of oil, which remains at its highest level since November 2014.

The rise in oil prices came after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) decided not to increase its production targets immediately, despite pressure from the United States.

Brent crude oil for December delivery opened higher on Monday, trading at US$83.26 per barrel on London’s Intercontinental Exchange Futures (ICE), the highest price since 10 November 2014 and up 0.69% on the closing price of the previous trading session.

Investors are also keeping an eye on developments in Italy and the United Kingdom.

The Italian government has decided to raise the deficit target for 2019 to 2.4% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as demanded by its coalition partners, the League and especially the Five Star Movement.

The resurgence of the trade war between Washington and Beijing, with the entry into force of new customs duties in the two countries, is another concern for investors.

In New York, Wall Street ended at a slight high on Friday, with the Dow rising 0.07% to 26,458.31 points, compared with the highest level since it was created in 1896 of 26,743.50 on 21 September.

The Nasdaq closed up by 0.05% to 8,046.35 points, after rising to its highest ever level of 8,109.68 points on 29 August.

In terms of exchange rates, the euro opened lower on the Frankfurt foreign exchange market, trading at US$1.1588, against US$1.1615 on Friday.

Source: Lusa