“European stocks drifted between gains and losses after officials endorsed a bailout for Portugal and raised the idea of extending Greece’s debt repayments. Asian shares slid, while U.S. futures rose.
Bouygues SA (EN) paced declining shares after reporting a slump in profit. ARM Holdings Plc (ARM) and ASML Holding NV (ASML) led technology shares lower as Hewlett-Packard Co. said it faced “another tough quarter.” Vodafone Group Plc (VOD) limited declines after posting better-than-estimated earnings.
The benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose less than 0.1 percent to 280.23 at 11:50 a.m. in London. The measure has swung between gains and losses at least 15 times today. The Stoxx 600 has retreated for the past two weeks after a selloff in commodity producers and renewed sovereign-debt concern outweighed increased company profits.
“Competing factors are really forcing investors to tread water in a market that looks pretty range bound,” said Jeremy Batstone-Carr, head of research at Charles Stanley & Co. in London. “Corporate news flow seems to have been taken rather positively to help steady the ship, but profound macroeconomic uncertainties remain very much in evidence.”
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