Europe Stocks volatile; Euro climbs above $1.14

European stocks swung between gains and losses on Thursday as investors digest gyrations in the euro, assessed corporate financial results and monitored developments in Greece’s persistent debt crisis.

The Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, +0.31% had been down by as much as 0.9%, but has since turned positive and was at 396.57, up 0.3%, as all but the telecoms group modestly advanced. Telefonica SA TEF, -1.84% was down 0.9%, with analysts pointing to a lackluster performance in the company’s domestic operations. Quarterly profit overall rose to 1.8 billion euros.

TalkTalk Telecom Group PLC’s TALK, +2.89% shares were among the Stoxx 600’s strongest performers, up 4.5% as the firm raised its revenue-growth target.

Major stock indexes vacillated in and out of the red, with volume lower overall as some European bourses were closed for the Ascension Day holiday. In Paris, the CAC 40 PX1, +0.82% recently turned up by 0.7% to 4,994.22, and in London, the FTSE 100 UKX, +0.11% rose about 0.2% to 6,961.17.

Germany’s DAX 30 DAX, +0.95% gained 0.8% at 11,440.10 after having fallen by as much as 1.2% as the euro EURUSD, +0.3435% leapt above $1.14 against the dollar for the first time since late February.

Strengthening in the euro has recently been a point of pressure for equities, particularly for the export-oriented German market. The euro gained as the dollar DXY, -0.30% continued to be punished after disappointing U.S. economic data on Wednesday. The data underscored expectations that the Federal Reserve will wait until later in the year to make its first interest-rate hike.

The euro briefly dipped back below $1.14 after Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis on Thursday said Greece’s debt repayments to the European Central Bank should be pushed back to “the distant future,” Reuters reported. Athens on Tuesday made a 750-million-euro ($836.7 million) loan repayment to the International Monetary Fund, but did so by raiding an emergency account.

Greece’s Athex Composite GD, +0.60% turned higher, rising 1.7% to 842.08.Greek bond prices remained higher, pushing the yield on two-year debt down 25 basis points to 19.71%, and the yield on 10-year debt down 5 basis points at 10.34%.

Source: MarketWatch