2006年9月29日全球金融市场周报 欧洲

　　Europe 欧洲

　　Europe's major stock markets had a mixed week. Merger speculation and a pickup in the technology sector contributed to strong gains for the German DAX (+2.5%) and the French CAC 40 (+1.4%), but sharp falls for oil producers and mining stocks helped to keep the UK's FTSE 100 in check (-0.04%). The defensive Swiss SPI (+0.8%) also underperformed other European markets. Takeover speculation was a major boost for the markets, as German truck maker, MAN, confirmed it was considering a bid for Swedish rival, Scania, while in the banking sector ABN Amro was said to be a potential target for Bank of America.

　　In the UK, building materials group, Hanson, was reported as a possible target for Mexican cement maker, Cemex, while in the technology sector European microchip stocks rose on the back of takeover speculation surrounding Infineon, a German semiconductor group. Sentiment was also lifted by a sharp drop in commodity prices, which investors hope will alleviate inflationary pressures and boost corporate margins. Oil prices dropped to their lowest level this year, while metal prices, such as copper and zinc, also experienced heavy falls on the back of evidence of a drop in global demand. However, the weakness in commodity prices was less positive for the UK market, whose heavily-weighted oil and mining stocks struggled throughout the week. UK investors were further hit by worries over a rise in UK inflation during August, which was seen as increasing the likelihood that the Bank of England will raise UK base rates again this year. With Germany inflation data also coming in stronger than expected last month, investors also expect the European Central Bank to continue to raise Eurozone interest rates in the coming months.

　　欧洲主要股市上周表现参差。合并传闻源源不绝，加上科技股回升，推动德国DAX指数(+2.5%)和法国CAC 40指数(+1.4%)大幅上扬，但石油生产商及矿务股急挫，却导致英国富时100指数举步维艰(-0.04%)。具防守性的瑞士SPI指数(+0.8%)表现亦逊于其它欧洲市场。

　　收购传闻为市场注入动力，德国货车制造商MAN证实正考虑瑞典对手Scania提出的收购建议，荷兰银行(ABN Amro)则据说是美国银行(Bank of America)的目标。英国方面，建材集团Hanson被传可能会被

　　商品价格急跌亦刺激投资气氛，投资者期望可因此而纾缓通胀压力及提升企业毛利。油价跌至今年最低水平，铜及锌等金属价格亦因全球需求有下跌之势而锐挫。不过，商品价格疲软却不利于英国市场，当地的重磅石油及矿务股奋力争持。8月份英国通胀上升，令英伦银行今年内再加息机会提高，英国投资者再受打击。上月德国通胀数据亦较预期强劲，投资者预计欧洲央行会在未来数月内继续加息。