- Commerzbank drops 9 per cent after hiking capital
- Italian long-term debt yield rise by 9bp after auction
- Ireland to issue 10 year debt

FTSE-100: -1.09%
Dax-30: -0.17%
Cac-40: -0.58%
FTSE Mibtel 30: -1.87%
Ibex 35: -1.03%
Stoxx 600: -0.41%

European equity indices are moving lower following the retreat seen overnight in Asia and the rise seen in Italian 10 year debt yields following this morning´s auction by the country´s Treasury.

That compares unfavourably with the improved demand seen for German debt instruments in another auction whose results were made known just afterwards.

On a more anecdotal note, Italy´s financial media is today carrying several articles regarding the need for the country´s political establishment to 'bite the bullet' on macroeconomic reforms as well as voters´ responsibility for the current dead-lock. Not surprisingly this is much the same as can be read in other periphery countries these days, comment analysts at Digital Look.

Not to be missed, either, is the sharp fall in Commerzbank stock after the German lender announced a capital increase of €2.5bn, towards the high-end of the markets´ expectations.

In other European news, according to Le Figaro French President Hollande yesterday disclosed that the government´s spending deficit would be close to 3.7% of GDP this year, well above the 3.5% which economists at Unicredit had been forecasting until recently.

The German government will today set new targets for the 2014 federal budget and medium-term financial plans up to 2017. No net borrowing is foreseen for 2015, according to Barclays Research.

Acting as a backdrop, China´s central bank on Wednesday said that it will move to limit regions´ indebtedness.

Adecco misses

Retail giant Inditex this morning announced a 22% increase in profits for 2012 to €2.4bn ($3.13bn).

Staffing company Adecco´s fourth quarter profits have come in short of analyst expectations.

From a sector stand-point the worst performance is to be seen in the following sectors: Banks (-1.21%), Basic resources (-1.09%) and Retail (-1.01%).

Spain´s red ink grows

Eurozone industrial production dropped by 0.4% month-on-month (Consensus: -0.1%), while the previous month´s data was revised higher.

Spain´s CPI rose to a 2.8% year-on-year rate in February (Consensus: 2.7%).

French consumer prices, on the other hand, declined to 1.0% from 1.2% in the same month.

Single currency indecisive at 1.30

The euro/dollar was off by -0.13%, to 1.3010.

Front month Brent crude future are now lower by 0.42% to the 109.19 dollar mark on the ICE.

AB

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