By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
European stocks fell Monday, as Deutsche Bank AG posted a slide
in quarterly profit, while prospects for a resolution to Greece's
debt troubles appear to be dimming.
Stoxx Europe 600 turned lower early in the session, losing 0.4%
to 406.78. No sectors were moving higher.
In Frankfurt, the DAX 30 shed 0.2% to 11,789.68, with Deutsche
Bank (DB) putting in the worst performance as its shares dropped
4.6%. The largest bank in Germany said first-quarter net profit
dropped about 50%
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/deutsche-bank-profit-halves-on-litigation-costs-2015-04-27)
to 559 million euros ($607.8 million), cut down by penalties the
company agreed to pay to settle allegations over manipulating the
London interbank offered rate, or Libor.
But Volkswagen AG shares topped the DAX, rising 3.2% after the
car maker's chairman, Ferdinand Piech, unexpectedly resigned
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/volkswagen-chairman-piech-resigns-2015-04-26)
over the weekend following a failed move to oust Chief Executive
Martin Winterkorn.
Meanwhile, Greece's debt crisis is still in focus. Some European
ministers have raised the possibility of coming up with a "Plan B"
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/some-europe-ministers-suggest-plan-b-if-greece-talks-fail-2015-04-27)
if talks on continued financing for Greece fail. The suggestion was
rejected by Eurogroup Chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem, but the idea
underscores the view by some eurozone's policy makers that a deal
for new bailout aid for Greece can be reached before the old deal
expires at the end of June.
Greece's Athex Composite was up less than 1 point at 761.62.
In Paris, the CAC 40 fell 0.8% to 5,158.24, and the U.K.'s FTSE
100 lost 0.4% to 7,043.57
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ftse-100-moves-lower-but-hsbc-outperforms-2015-04-27).
But shares of HSBC Holdings PLC rose 2.7%, following a Sunday Times
report the lender is weighing a deal valued at 20 billion pounds
($30.4 billion) to spin off its British retail bank.
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