US stocks declined, ending an eight-day winning streak for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, as India's unexpected interest rate boost spurred speculation withdrawals of economic stimulus will curtail global growth.
 
Exxon Mobil Corp. and Dow Chemical Co. dragged energy and raw-material producers to the biggest losses in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index as oil fell below $80 a barrel. Financial shares dropped after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. cut estimates for banks and brokerages. Palm Inc. plunged 29% after forecasting sales that trailed analysts' estimates and Canaccord Financial Inc. cut its share-price estimate to zero.
 
The S&P 500 fell 0.5% to 1,159.90 at 4 p.m. in New York, trimming its third straight weekly advance to 0.9% and had the biggest daily decline since Feb. 23. The Dow lost 37.19 points, or 0.4%, to 10,741.98 after rising 2.2% since March 8. Almost two stocks dropped for each that rose on US equity exchanges.
 
Most stocks fell Thursday on concern the Federal Reserve will boost the discount rate, the amount charged on direct loans to banks. Economists said this may occur before the next meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee on April 28. Fed spokesman David Skidmore declined to comment.
 
The S&P 500 climbed to the highest level since September 2008 on March 17. This week's rally brought the surge from a 12- year low last March to 72% after governments and central banks around the world maintained low interest rates and committed more than $12 trillion to stimulate the economy.
 
Stock swings have narrowed, with the 10-day average change between intraday lows and highs for the S&P 500 falling to 0.8% from 1.8% on Feb. 8.
 
More than 10.3 billion shares changed hands on US exchanges, the most since Feb. 5 and 20% higher than the average in 2010, as the expiration of futures and options on stocks and equity indexes spurred trading. The process known as quadruple witching occurs every three months.
 
The VIX, as the Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index is known, rose for the first time in four days, advancing 2.1% to 16.97. The index, a measure of how much investors pay for insurance against declines in stocks, moves in the opposite direction of the S&P 500 about 80% of the time.
 
The energy and raw-materials industries in the S&P 500 fell more than 0.9% as the Dollar rose, reducing the appeal of commodities as an alternative investment.
 
The Dollar Index, a measure of the US currency's performance against those of six major trading partners, advanced 0.6%. The Euro fell as concern Greece will fail to secure financial assistance from the European Union reduced demand for the currency.
 
Exxon dropped 0.5% to $67.04, while Dow Chemical retreated 3.5% to $28.95. Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc., the largest publicly traded copper producer, slid 2.2% to $78.51.
 
Financial shares in the S&P 500 dropped 0.7% after Goldman Sachs said it was cutting estimates on banks and brokers with ties to the capital markets by 15% following February results.
 
Goldman said it favored JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp. versus Morgan Stanley and Citigroup Inc., and reiterated its sell recommendation on Jefferies Group Inc.
 
Palm slumped 29% to $4. Revenue in the quarter ending in May will be less than $150 million, Chief Financial Officer Doug Jeffries said Thursday on Palm's third-quarter conference call. Analysts in a survey had estimated $300 million on average.
 
The company also reported its 11th straight quarterly loss. Deutsche Bank AG slashed its price estimate on the stock 38% to $5. Canaccord cut its estimate to zero from $4 on solvency concerns.
 
DirecTV fell 3.4% to $33.42. The largest US satellite-television was cut to "hold" from "buy" at Citigroup Inc.
 
Aetna Inc. rose 3.7% to $34.46. The third-largest US health insurer said it expects first-quarter operating profit per share to exceed analysts' estimates.
 
US health-care stocks are poised to rally if the industry overhaul being considered by Congress becomes law because it removes uncertainty and expands coverage, BlackRock Inc.'s Bob Doll said.
 
The companies also are "still very cheap" relative to their earnings prospects, said Doll, vice chairman and global chief investment officer for equities at New York-based BlackRock, which oversees $3.4 trillion. Amgen Inc., UnitedHealth Group Inc. and Johnson & Johnson are "favorites" at the world's biggest asset manager, he said in an interview Thursday in Dayton, Ohio.
 
The House of Representatives plans to vote on a $940 billion overhaul of the US health-care system that aims to extend coverage to 32 million uninsured Americans on March 21. Health-care companies and health-maintenance organizations, known as HMOs, will benefit most because more people will be insured as the US population ages, Doll said.
 
The S&P 500 has entered an "air pocket" of little resistance as it pushed to a 17-month high, according to analysts at Instinet, who say the benchmark could extend its rally. The area of little resistance extends to between 1,180 and 1,200, where prices may keep rising even with low volume. 

 European shares on Friday retreated from their 17-month highs reached earlier in the week as concerns over Greece's debt problems persisted.
 
Greece said it could not achieve the promised deficit reductions if its borrowing costs remained high, inciting speculation that the country may have to seek help from the International Monetary Fund.
 
Alpha Bank slid 9.6% to €6.75 over the week, EFG Eurobank fell 3.2% to €6.26. National Bank of Greece fell 6.5% to €14.97. However, broader market trends remained positive, allowing the FTSE Eurofirst 300 to close 0.6% higher over the week at 1,065.48.
 
Nestlé might spend R$650m ($361m) on acquisitions to expand its mineral water and dairy business in Brazil, according to the company's chief executive in the South American country. Speculation that the world's biggest food group might be in negotiations with Garoto, the Brazilian chocolate company, continued.
 
Nestlé shares dipped 1.1% this week to SFr53.15.
 
France's Ubisoft Entertainment, Europe's largest video game maker, jumped nearly 10% after Natixis upgraded the stock to "add" from "sell".
 
Swatch, the world's largest watchmaker, rose 4.2% to SFr339 over the week. Rogerio Fujimori at Credit Suisse said: "Swatch management recently indicated that revenues are running above the 'boom' levels of January/February 2008, which suggests that Swatch continues to materially outperform the industry." Swatch shares have risen more than 130% since January 2009.
 
Spain's Telefónica together with Mexican media group Televisa and Mexican cable television company Megacable on Friday announced they planned to jointly bid for fibre optic cable capacity to be auctioned off by Mexico's government. Telefónica shares dipped 0.8% this week to €17.78.
 
One of the biggest risers this week was Lindt & Spruengli which gained 6.3% to SFr 27,250 after UBS upgraded the Swiss chocolatier. 
 
GERMANY
 
German stocks fell for a second day, with the benchmark DAX trimming its third straight weekly gain, as K+S AG and steelmakers retreated.
 
K+S led declining shares and ThyssenKrupp AG dropped with metal prices in London. OBH Technology AG rose to the highest level on record after the company and Thales SA came closer to winning a contract to supply a new generation of weather satellites after the European Space Agency invited the group to enter formal contract negotiations.
 
The DAX Index dropped 0.5% to 5,982.43. The gauge climbed 0.6% this week after Standard & Poor's said it is no longer reviewing Greece's credit rating for a downgrade and as the Federal Reserve pledged to maintain record-low borrowing costs for an extended period. The broader HDAX Index fell 0.5% Friday.
 
K+S, Europe's biggest potash producer, fell 1.6% to 44.83 Euros, while Metro AG, Germany's largest retailer, dropped 1.2% to 41.99 Euros.
 
ThyssenKrupp, Germany's largest steelmaker, lost 1.7% to 25.10 Euros as aluminum, copper, lead, nickel, tin and zinc all fell on the London Metal Exchange. Smaller competitor Salzgitter AG slipped 0.6% to 67.14 Euros.
 
Volkswagen AG, Europe's largest carmaker, increased 1% to 72.16 Euros, while Deutsche Lufthansa AG gained 1.2% to 12.29 Euros.
 
Pfleiderer AG sank 5.8% to 4.90 Euros, the lowest close since July. The German maker of laminate flooring reported a full-year net loss of 69.8 million Euros ($94.9 million), compared with a profit of 5.8 million Euros a year ago.
 
OHB jumped 6.7% to 17.80 Euros. Thales and OHB beat out a competing bid by European Aeronautic, Defence & Space Co.'s Astrium divison by offering a lower price, according to a statement by the agency's tender evaluation board. 
 
FRANCE
 
France's CAC 40 Index dropped 12.74 points, or 0.3%, to 3,925.44. The measure ended the week 0.1% lower. The SBF 120 Index retreated 0.3% to 2,882.22.
 
ArcelorMittal dropped 69 cents, or 2.2%, to 31.12 Euros, leading a retreat in the CAC 40 index. The world's largest steelmaker fell after India's central bank unexpectedly increased interest rates for the first time since July 2008.
 
Credit Agricole rose 24.5 cents, or 2%, to 12.47 Euros, leading gains by French banks after Lloyds Banking Group Plc said it may be profitable this year after "strong" earnings in the first 10 weeks of 2010. Societe Generale SA (GLE FP) increased 34.5 cents, or 0.8%, to 45 Euros.
 
Ubisoft Entertainment, Europe's largest video- game maker, rose 80.4 cents, or 8.6%, to 10.18 Euros, the steepest advance since December. The shares were upgraded to "add" from "sell" at Natixis, which cited expected positive news flow in coming weeks. Analyst Richard Beaudoux cut the stock to "sell" in July, before a 36% slide in the shares.
 
"While the going for retailers remains tough, the fact remains that, on the stock market, the video game sector continues to be driven by news flow and we believe this is set to improve in the short term," Beaudoux wrote in a note Friday. He cited the industry's E3 Expo June conference in Los Angeles as a "catalyst" and added that sales are likely to get a boost by the introduction of "Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands" in May. 
 
BELGIUM
 
In Brussels the Bel 20 closed out the week on 2,639.28, down 0.59% on the day.
 
Belgium's economic recovery is set to be gradual and fragile, with unusually high uncertainty, the International Monetary Fund said in a report on Monday. "The near term outlook is clouded by a sluggish rebound in both domestic and external demand, rising unemployment, and growing public debt," the IMF said.
 
The Washington-based lender supported the fiscal consolidation strategy adopted by authorities to achieve a balanced budget by 2015. The lender also welcomed the authorities' commitment to take additional measures if necessary to achieve the deficit targets for 2011 and beyond.
 
"Early action is crucial to restore fiscal sustainability, further reinforce financial stability, and intensify labor and product market reforms to boost competitiveness and growth prospects." The IMF said the withdrawal from the emergency support to the financial sector should be done gradually to avoid market disruptions and a credit squeeze.
 
The IMF's Executive Directors highlighted the urgency of structural reforms aimed at raising productivity and restoring growth to its potential. Also, directors encouraged the authorities to push ahead with the restructuring of the labor and product markets.
 
Belgian IT services company RealDolmen said on Thursday that US investor Gores Group had sold its remaining stake in the group to various shareholders.
 
In 2004, Gores purchased 200 million Euros ($273 million) of the company's debts from a banking syndicate and agreed to convert most of it into equity to take a stake of about 83%.
 
The company, called Real Software at the time, racked up losses exceeding 400 million Euros from 2000-03. It returned to profit in 2006 and bought rival Dolmen in 2008.
 
Belgian banking and insurance group KBC will delay floating Czech unit CSOB until June at the earliest because of the complexity of the issue and an unfavourable market climate, De Standaard said on Wednesday.
 
KBC has agreed with the European Commission to sell or run down a range of activities to gain approval for the receipt of 7 billion Euros ($9.6 billion) of state aid.
 
De Standaard, which reported the original listing was planned for April or May, said preparation for the flotation of 30 to 40% of CSOB was more complex than expected and the market climate was not entirely favourable.
 
If it did not take place in June, it would have to wait until after the summer, the newspaper said.
 
A KBC spokeswoman said KBC and CSOB management were committed to the IPO and that important steps had been taken in the past four months.
 
"These preparations will continue, while observing market circumstances... with the intention to launch at the best time," she said. KBC has only said the IPO was planned this year.
 
THE NETHERLANDS
 
The AEX in Amsterdam finished the session Friday on 338.65, a dip of 0.97%.
 
The Netherlands will have to make structural savings of EUR 29 billion by 2015 in order to put its public finances in order, according to a policy think-tank.
 
The Central Planning Bureau says on the path of current policy, the Dutch budget deficit is likely to fall from 6.3% of gross domestic product in 2010 to 4.9% in 2011 and 2.9% in 2015 - a total deficit correction of EUR 18 billion.
 
The rising life expectancy and the ageing Dutch population, however, puts a greater burden on public finances, the think-tank said.
 
"With unchanged policies, budget deficits will soar and the government debt will become unsustainable," the CPB warned.
 
"An improvement of the structural budget balance of 4.5% of GDP or EUR 29 billion is needed in order to make public finances 'ageing-proof'."
 
The think-tank projects the Dutch economy to grow 1.5% this year and 2% in 2011.
 
Unemployment will rise to about 500,000 on average in both 2010 and 2011.
 
"Due to the financial crisis, the Dutch economy has lost about 5% of gross domestic product compared with previous projections," the CPB said.
 
"This loss will probably not be recovered in the next cabinet period."
 
The Dutch cabinet collapsed last month over disagreements within the governing coalition on extending troop deployments in Afghanistan.
 
Consumer confidence in the Netherlands improved slightly, with the sentiment index rising to -12 this month from -13 in February, the country's Central Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday.
 
Assessments on the economic situation in the past 12 months increased by 5 points to reach -47 in March.
 
On the other hand, views on the economic climate in the next 12 months were positive, with the corresponding sub-index at 7.
 
Consumer opinions on their own financial situation were the same as in February. Opinions on whether it is a good time to purchase major items also remained unaltered.
 
Thursday, the Netherlands Central Bureau of Statistics announced that the jobless rate stood at 5.7% in the December to February period, up from 5.6% in the November to January period. The jobless rate came in line with economists expectations. A year ago, the jobless rate was 4.1%.
 
The number of unemployed was 441,000 persons in the December to February period, which was 5,000 persons more than the previous three months period. 
 
SWITZERLAND
 
Zurich's SMI headed into the weekend on 6,880.76, a 0.25% decline.
 
Economic recovery in Switzerland has stabilized and the short-term outlook is likely to be friendlier than a few months ago, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, or SECO, said Tuesday, unveiling its latest economic outlook.
 
The SECO expects the economic upswing to lose some momentum this year in the face of not more than moderate global economic impulses and falling domestic demand. Further, rising employment and a decline in the unemployment rate is not expected before next year.
 
The expert group on economic forecasts of the Swiss Federal Government now sees 1.4% growth this year, double the 0.7% expansion predicted in December. Meanwhile, the projection for 2011 was left unchanged at 2%.
 
On March 11, the Swiss National Bank also revised up its forecast to show 1.5% growth this year, up from the 0.5%-1% rise foreseen in December. Gross domestic product rose 0.7% sequentially in the fourth quarter. The economy exited recession in the third quarter last year by growing 0.5%, ending four quarters of negative GDP.
 
In further evidence of improved economic prospects, the Zurich-based KOF said on February 26 that Swiss year-on-year GDP growth rates will remain in positive territory this year. The think tank sees 0.6% expansion this year, higher than the modest 0.1% growth predicted in September.
 
As a consequence of the brighter economic development, the outlook for the country's labor market improved notably. The jobless rate is forecast to be 4.3% this year, down from 4.9% predicted previously. The rate is then expected to drop to 4.2% in 2011, revised down from 4.9% forecast earlier.
 
Against the background of moderate recovery of the economy and the employment market, the likelihood of price increases remains low despite the highly expansive monetary policy practiced worldwide and in Switzerland in recent years, SECO said. Prices have picked up since early 2010 after staying negative last year due to crude oil price effects. SECO maintained 2010 and 2011 inflation forecasts at 0.8% and 0.7%, respectively.
 
Listing out the risks that the Swiss economy may face in the coming months, SECO said the fragile and high-risk condition of the global economy could turn out to be a stumbling block for strong growth of Swiss exports. Moreover, the domestic demand which has so far been quite vivid will probably lose momentum. In the fourth quarter, Swiss exports rebounded at a robust pace and domestic demand remained strong.
 
Further, SECO said it has to be expected that the building industry will be affected by a probable downswing more strongly than in the past due to the expiry of public projects. Furthermore, expansion in private consumption is likely to slow down owing to weaker immigration and moderate increases in real income.
 
Last week, the Swiss National Bank left its key interest rate unchanged for a fourth time to support the economy, which is emerging from the shadows of the worst recession. In its first quarterly meeting of the year, the central bank's Governing Board, led by Chairman Philipp Hildebrand kept its key interest rate unchanged at 0.25%.
 
Sticking to its stance on the country's currency, the SNB said it will act decisively to prevent any excessive appreciation of the Swiss franc against the Euro. An appreciation of this kind would result in an undesired tightening of monetary conditions, the bank cautioned.
 
Industrial production in Switzerland rose 6.4% sequentially in the fourth quarter, the Federal Statistical Office said Thursday. Output rose more than the expected growth of 5%.
 
On an annual basis, production fell 1.1% in the final quarter of 2009, less than a 3.5% drop forecast. It follows a 6.6% drop in the third quarter. During the same period, industrial turnover decreased 4.3%, while orders received grew 1.4%.
 
Switzerland's watch exports grew 14.2% in February compared to the previous year to CHF 1.2 billion, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry FH said Thursday. The group said February's data provided a clear confirmation of the trend of previous months. During the first two months of the year, the sector exceeded the 2009 level for the same period by 8.6%.
 
Export of wristwatches showed an annual growth of 15.6% in February. At the same time, the number of timepieces exported grew in parallel by 30.8%. Around 430,000 more watches left Switzerland in February.
 
The report showed that many markets recorded positive results in February. After some hesitation in January and sixteen months of intensely negative results, the US returned to growth in February. Meanwhile, main European markets remained lacklustre. China made strong progress, moving into third place.
 
The Swiss parliament's upper house on Wednesday approved deals with the United States and four other countries to share data on potential tax dodgers, bringing the Alpine state closer in line with international standards.
 
Under the deals Switzerland will have banking data sharing arrangements with France, Britain, the United States, Denmark and Mexico in cases of tax fraud and tax evasion, in accordance with OECD standards, except when those requests are based on stolen data.
 
Under pressure from the G20, Switzerland, the world's biggest offshore banking centre, agreed a year ago to relax its prized bank secrecy and agreed for the first time to share certain bank client data with other jurisdictions, once bilateral tax treaties are ratified.
 
Switzerland's relations with both France and Germany have been strained in recent months after both countries obtained stolen information on possible tax dodgers with Swiss bank accounts.
 
"We won't give administrative assistance if stolen data is presented. That's our sovereign right," finance minister Hans-Rudolf Merz told television show Classe Politique.
 
"France has stolen data," he said. "If we get a request for administrative assistance from France, we're not honouring it."
 
All five agreements have been signed bilaterally but still have to be passed by parliament's lower house, where the right-wing SVP, which has said it opposes them, has the most seats.
 
AUSTRIA
 
The ATX in Vienna completed the trading day Friday at 2,578.00, a drop of 0.22%.
 
Tuesday, the Statistics Austria announced that the consumer price index or CPI rose 0.9% year-on-on year in February, slower than the 1.2% growth in the previous month.
 
Food and non-alcoholic beverages prices fell 2.3% annually in February, while clothing and footwear prices fell 1.8%. Health care charges were up 1.6%.
 
On a monthly basis, the CPI increased 0.1% in February, after falling 0.3% in January.
 
Meanwhile, the harmonized index of consumer prices or HICP rose 0.9% on an annual basis in February, slowing from 1.2% increase in January. Month-on-month, the HICP climbed 0.2%, after falling 0.4% in January.
 
Austrian postal service provider Oesterreichische Post AG, or Austrian Post, said Tuesday its third-quarter net profit fell 33% as the macroeconomic slump reduced the handled volume of parcels and as a general migration from letters to electronic communication cut into sales.
 
The company's management will propose a dividend of EUR1.5 a share, unchanged from the previous year, it said.
 
Net profit for the full year came to EUR79.7 million, down from EUR118.9 million, and considerably below the EUR112 million average estimate of seven analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires.
 
Sales fell 3.5% to EUR2.36 billion from EUR2.44 billion in 2008. This was in line with the analysts' estimate of EUR2.35 billion.
 
For 2010, Austrian Post said it expects the revenue decline in its mail division to continue, while its parcels business is expected to see some sales growth. Overall, Austrian Post expects group sales to drop by 1% to 2%, and to make a margin on earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, or Ebitda, of 10% to 12%, it said.
 
Sales of a new motorcycle designed and engineered by Austria's KTM Power Sports AG and to be built by India's Bajaj Auto Ltd. could be almost four times greater than those of KTM's entire current model range, underscoring the importance of emerging markets to its future.
 
In an interview with Dow Jones Investment Banker, KTM's Chief Financial Officer, Patrick Prugger, said he hoped its share of sales of the 125cc machine, known for now as the X-Street and which may go on sale at the end of this year or early in 2011, will be 40,000 units annually in places such as Brazil, where it has distribution rights.
 
An official at Bajaj, which is building the KTM-branded machine in Pune, India, confirmed that it expects to sell a further 100,000-200,000 units a year in India, Pakistan and elsewhere in Asia. KTM gets a royalty from the machines sold there.
 
In its last financial year to Aug. 31, 2009, KTM's core 30-plus model range of off-road machines and exotic street bikes sold around 62,000 units, down some 30% against the previous year.
 
SWEDEN
 
Stockholm's OMX ended the week at 1,020.26, up 0.20% for the day.
 
Sweden's unemployment rate eased slightly to 9.3% in February from 9.4% in January, Statistics Sweden said on Thursday.
 
Economists had expected the unemployment rate to remain unchanged at 9.4%.
 
A total 459,000 Swedes were without a job in February - an increase of 72,000 from a year ago.
 
On a seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate stood at 9.1%.
 
Sweden's Ericsson will buy a controlling stake in a joint venture between South Korea's LG Electronics and Nortel Networks Corp, the Seoul Economic Daily's Web service reported Thursday.
 
Ericsson will announce an agreement on Friday to buy a 50% stake plus one share in LG-Nortel from Nortel, the newspaper said, without specifying sources.
 
Thermoplastic elastomer comPounding firm Hexpol AB is acquiring the VTC TPE group from polymer producer Vita plc for 35 million Euros ($48 million).
 
"VTC is a perfect fit for our company as its products will complete our product range," Georg Brunstam, Hexpol CEO and chairman, told European Plastics News. "We operate mainly in Europe and VTC's main markets are Germany, the UK, France and Scandinavia."

 
Some 80% of VTC products are sold in Europe, with the remaining 20% going to markets such as China and Vietnam, he added.
 
VTC has an estimated annual sales of 33 million Euros ($45.3 million) and is expected to become part of Hexpol in April.
 
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries is close to winning the €3.5bn auction for Ratiopharm, the German generic drug company being sold off by the indebted empire of the late Adolf Merckle.
 
The Israeli company beat Pfizer of the US and Actavis of Iceland to win control of the asset, according to people close to the situation.
 
That followed a series of presentations last month, where bidders made their cases to Ratiopharm's management on "soft" issues such as manufacturing and employment.
 
Teva's success will be a blow to Pfizer, which had been keen to acquire Ratiopharm to boost sales as blockbuster patents such as Effexor and Lipitor expire.
 
Teva is the world leader in generics with 18% of the market, following its $7.5bn takeover of Barr Pharmaceuticals of the US in 2008. Ratiopharm is Europe's largest and fifth overall with 3% market share.
 
Although Pfizer's established products division already has sales of $2.7bn through marketing its own products such as Norvasc and Zoloft, Ratiopharm would have catapulted it into the generic big league, on a par with companies such as Mylan and Watson, which each control about 6% of global sales.
 
Actavis will also be disappointed at losing the auction. The Icelandic generic drugs group had initially teamed up with EQT Partners to make a joint bid. But the Swedish private equity group withdrew last month after deciding a deal would not be in the best interests of its investors.
 
DENMARK
 
In Copenhagen the OMX rounded off the week's trading at 379.68, up 0.48%.
 
Nationalbanken on Wednesday raised its forecast for gross domestic product growth to 1.3% from 0.9% for the current year, while maintaining a 1.7% forecast for next year.
 
"The latest quarterly national accounts show that the restrained increase in production in the third quarter 2009 continued in the fourth quarter," the central bank said. "The recession in the Danish economy has thus stopped."
 
Like other Western economies, Denmark is heading to economic growth after the setback in 2008 and in the first half of 2009.
 
For the current year, the central bank has raised its inflation forecast to 2.0% from 1.4%, but for the next year, it still sees inflation at 1.5%.
 
In 2012, Nationalbanken expects inflation to remain at 1.5%, while GDP is seen higher, at 1,9%.
 
Saxo Bank, the online trading and investment specialist, will now offer property investment products for both private clients and institutional investors through a new company, Saxo Properties.
 
The newly formed investment firm Saxo Properties, fully owned by Saxo Bank, will launch closed-ended funds for both high net worth clients and institutional investors. Two of the Danish real estate industry's most well-known individuals, Jesper Damborg and Claus Klostermann, will respectively become CEO and managing director of investments at Saxo Properties.
 
"Initially, Saxo Properties will focus on handpicked Copenhagen residential, office and retail properties. The first fund will close within the next three months, but we intend to establish a number of funds with a significant ownership capital of at least DKK 250 million," said Jesper Damborg.
 
Saxo Bank's business model is often described as a facilitator model where the bank through its trading platforms offers liquidity, products and services to clients as obtained from other financial institutions. Saxo Properties will use the same model. Saxo Bank has hired Flemming Schandorff, the former COO of ISS, one of the world's largest commercial providers of facility services, to a similar position at Saxo Properties to facilitate administration of the estates.
 
"First and foremost, Saxo Properties will prioritize achieving attractive market returns, but we will also focus on how to capitalize on tight cost control and good management, such as rebuilding, mixed lease and general maintenance," said Jesper Damborg.

 
Saxo Bank's CEOs and founders, Kim Fournais and Lars Seier Christensen, said in a joint statement: "Saxo Bank holds asset under management of DKK 40 billion, and our focus on asset management has proved a great success. Many clients have asked for property investment products and there is also a clear synergy between Saxo Asset Management and Saxo Properties, which we can now utilize. Many properties are traded at a low price especially in Copenhagen, so the timing is right to expand our asset management to include property investment products."
 
Last year, Saxo Bank bought Sirius Asset Management, Capital Four and 51% of Global Evolution. The three companies now form Saxo Asset Management, which has management expertise for Danish bonds, Danish equities, corporate bonds and emerging market bonds.

NORWAY
 
Oslo's OBX closed Friday and the week on 334.93, a drop of 0.26%.
 
Monday, the Statistics Norway announced that the trade surplus stood at NOK 32.45 billion in February, up from NOK 30.25 billion surplus recorded a year ago.
 
Exports increased 0.1% on an annual basis to NOK 64.17 billion in February, while imports dropped 6.3% to NOK 31.72 billion.
 
The export value of crude oil amounted to NOK 24.7 billion in February. On a monthly basis, the export value increased by 18.4% and was up 51.1% compared to the previous year.
 
For the January to February period, the trade balance showed a surplus of NOK 66.7 billion, widening from NOK 62.62 billion surplus a year ago. During the period, exports and imports decreased by 2.9% and 11.5%, respectively.
 
Norwegian is very pleased that the Court of Appeal has ordered SAS to pay Norwegian close to NOK 175 million (approx 22 million Euros) in damages for the industrial espionage that we were exposed to, said CEO of Norwegian, Bjorn Kjos. Borgarting Court of Appeal has ordered SAS to pay damages of NOK 160 million, in addition to legal costs for the District Court and the Court of Appeal. In total, the amount adds up to just under NOK 175 million.
 
At the end of last year, the Court of Appeal heard the action for damages for SAS industrial espionage against Norwegian. The District Court ordered SAS to pay Norwegian NOK 132 million plus legal costs, in total amounting to over NOK 138 million. Both SAS and Norwegian appealed against the amount of damages to the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal has ordered SAS to pay NOK 160 million in damages, plus the full legal costs amounting to NOK 6 839 770 for the District Court and NOK 7 851 472 for the Court of Appeal. Borgarting Court of Appeal has by its ruling raised the amount of compensation and upheld Norwegians contention that the company suffered a significant economic loss as a result of SAS industrial espionage.
 
That the Court of Appeal now increases the amount of compensation is an important signal that industrial espionage will not be accepted, said Bjorn Kjos. At the same time, it shows that the justice system works and that unethical behavior over time will have economic consequences.
 
In a very vulnerable start-up phase of the company we were exposed to gross and cynical industrial espionage from SAS. Norwegian lost several hundred million Norwegian kroner as a result of SAS illegally usurping internal and sensitive information about Norwegian from the booking system Amadeus. SAS has been convicted for this espionage. That the Court of Appeal now increases the amount of damages is a natural outcome of the case and we are very pleased with the result, said CEO Bjorn Kjos.
 
FINLAND
 
In Helsinki the OMX finished the day on 7,187.36, down 0.80%.
 
Wednesday, the Statistics Finland announced that the producer price index or PPI for manufactured products increased 1.2% year-on-year in February, compared to the 0.1% fall in the previous month.
 
On a monthly basis, the PPI rose 1.1% in February, same as in the previous month.
 
Export price index declined 0.9% on an annual basis in February, slower than the 1.7% drop in the preceding month. At the same time, import price index climbed 1.8%, after falling 0.2% in January. Month-on-month, export prices rose to 0.6% in February from 0.4% in the previous month, while import prices climbed to 1.4% from 1%.
 
Meanwhile, the wholesale price index or WPI rose 1.2% annually in February, after falling 0.7% in January. The WPI was up 1.3% compared to the preceding month.
 
Finnish current account surplus narrowed to EUR 268 million in January from EUR 445 million surplus in December, figures released by the Bank of Finland showed Monday.
 
A breakdown of data showed that goods trade surplus rose to EUR 106 million in January from EUR 66 million surplus in December. The surplus on services trade narrowed to EUR 127 million from EUR 421 million. Income surplus expanded to EUR 176 million from EUR 90 million. The deficit on transfers widened to EUR 141 million from EUR 132 million.
 
Further, the capital account surplus remained at EUR 12 million in January, while the financial account balance swung to a surplus of EUR 2.94 billion from a deficit of EUR 1.79 billion recorded in December.
 
In 2009, the current account posted a surplus of EUR 2.3 billion, which represent a contraction to EUR 1.3% of GDP. Current account receipts decreased by some 29% from a year earlier, to EUR 74 billion, and current account expenditures fell by about 27% to EUR 72 billion. In the previous recession of the 1990s, the largest fall in current account receipts and expenditures occurred in 1991, when the former declined by over 7% and the latter by about 7% year-on-year, the central bank said.
 
Tuesday, the Statistics Finland announced that the wages and salaries sum of the whole economy dropped 2.2% on an annual basis in the November to January period, in contrast to the 3.5% growth recorded in the corresponding period of the previous year.
 
In the November to January period, the growth in the wages and salaries sum slowed down or turned negative in nearly all main industries, the statistical office said. Wages and salaries sum in manufacturing fell 10.5%, while wages and salaries in construction dropped 4.1%.
 
The wages and salaries sum decreased in financial intermediation by 2.9% in the November to January period, while wages and salaries for trade and other services dropped by 2.6% and 1.8% respectively. However, the wages and salaries sum in the public sector grew slightly faster than the previous year. 
 
SPAIN
 
Madrid's IBEX rounded off a voltile week at 10,990.80, a dip of 0.75%.
 
The Conference Board leading economic index for Spain stood at 109.4 in January, down from 109.6 in the previous month, the Conference Board said on Wednesday.
 
Four of the six components that make up the leading index decreased in January. Negative contributions came from the Spanish equity price index, job placings, the inverted long-term government bond yield and the capital equipment component of industrial production.
 
Positive contributions came from the Spanish contribution to the Euro M2 money supply and the order books survey.
 
At the same time, the Conference Board coincident economic index - a measure of current economic activity - fell to 99.9 from 100.1.
 
House prices in Spain slid 4.3% year-on-year in the December quarter of 2009, statistical office INE said on Tuesday.
 
This follows a 7% decline in the preceding quarter.
 
Sharp falls in house prices were recorded in Aragon, the Balearic Islands, Cantabria, Catalunya, Madrid, Navarra and the Basque Country.
 
On the other hand, price increases were recorded in Extremadura and Melilla, while prices were flat in Murcia.
 
On a quarterly basis, house prices were down 0.4% in the December quarter, following the 0.9% decrease in the September quarter.
 
Spain's Inditex, the fast-growing owner of Zara stores, Wednesday reported a jump in fourth-quarter profit and said this year's sales were off to a strong start, as the global consumer made a comeback following last year's economic downturn.
 
Still, some analysts voiced concern that Inditex, which last year soared past Gap Inc (GPS) to become the most-selling fashion retailer in the world, isn't expanding as fast as it could.
 
The La Coruna, northwestern Spain-based clothing giant said net profit for the fiscal fourth quarter ended Jan. 31 rose by 18% to EUR483 million from EUR410 million a year earlier. Sales rose 8.9% in the quarter, to EUR3.33 billion. Both figures were comfortably ahead of analyst expectations.
 
The San Francisco retailer last month reported a 4% rise fourth quarter sales, to $4.24 billion (EUR3.08 billion), and while Gap is closing more stores than it opens, Inditex is opening about a store a day.
 
Chief Executive Pablo Isla said the Spanish company expects to grow its global footprint by between 8% and 10% a year through 2012, and to be present in more than 80 countries by that date.
 
And while analysts were hoping for even stronger growth, Isla said Inditex won't sacrifice quality for quantity, preferring to "cherry pick" good locations for stores. Growth will be geared towards Asia and Europe, while the company will be selective on expansion in the Americas, he said. 
 
PORTUGAL
 
In Lisbon the PSI Generali finished the day Friday on 2,763.80, 0.39% off the pace.
 
Wednesday, the Statistics Portugal announced that the producer price index or PPI rose 2.1% on an annual basis in February, faster than the 1.5% growth in the previous month. A year ago, the PPI was down 2.4%.
 
On a monthly basis, the PPI increased 0.1% in February, slower than the 1.3% growth in the preceding month.
 
Meanwhile, the manufacturing PPI increased 2% year-on-year in February and was up 0.1% compared to the preceding month.
 
Portugal's minority Socialist government wants to build on the passage last week of its 2010 budget and push through a symbolic vote of support for its longer-term plan to cut the country's swollen budget deficit.
 
But the vote of confidence in the four-year plan, which the government hopes to secure on March 25, would not guarantee the passage of separate bills that will make up its deficit-cutting programme.
 
The government's austerity plan calls for the budget deficit to be slashed to 2.8% of gross domestic product in 2013 from 9.3% last year and markets are watching closely for signs of problems implementing it.
 
ITALY
 
Italy's benchmark FTSE MIB Index dropped 97.85, or 0.4%, to 22,687.30 in Milan, up 0.5% this week.
 
Atlantia climbed 0.9% to 17.46 Euros, its second day of gains. Italy's toll highway operator was raised to "outperform" from "neutral" at Exane BNP Paribas.
 
Brembo, the world's largest manufacturer of disk brakes, rose 2.8% to 5.61 Euros as Centrobanca SpA recommended buying the shares.
 
Eni, Italy's biggest energy company, fell 0.8% to 17.09 Euros as crude oil fell the most in six weeks.
 
Crude oil for April delivery fell $2.10, or 2.5%, to $80.19 a barrel at 11:11 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier, it touched $80.07, the biggest drop since Feb. 5. Futures are down 1.3% this week.
 
Saipem, Europe's largest oilfield-services provider, gained 1.8% to 27.74 Euros, rebounding from Thursday's 1.1% decline. European oil services stocks were upgraded to "positive" from "neutral" at Barclays Capital, saying commodity prices are at a level that will likely support further investment. 
 
GREECE
 
Athen's Athex Composite ended Friday at 2,049.36, up 1.47%.
 
Rating agency Standard & Poor's on Tuesday said it affirmed its 'BBB+' long-term and 'A-2' short-term sovereign credit ratings on Greece. At the same time, the ratings were removed from CreditWatch, where they had been placed with negative implications in December last year. The outlook, which was stable prior to the CreditWatch placement, is now negative, the rating agency said.
 
On March 5 2010, the Greek parliament approved its third set of deficit reduction measures to reinforce its budgetary consolidation strategy and meet its deficit target of 8.7% of GDP in 2010.
 
"We view the government's fiscal consolidation program as supportive of the ratings at their current level, hence our rating affirmation," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Marko Mrsnik said.
 
S&P views the government's total package of measures as appropriate to achieve its 2010 fiscal target, given the deterioration in the country's growth prospects. Based on the revised growth forecast, the rating agency expect the recession to continue, with real GDP contracting by 4% this year.
 
"Despite the new measures, we think it will be difficult for Greece to comply fully with its planned consolidation path, reducing its deficit to 5.6 % of GDP in 2011 and 2.8% of GDP in 2012, if it does not implement additional measures in the coming years," said Mrsnik.
 
S&P reiterated that its ratings on Greece will continue to depend on its stand-alone credit rating fundamentals. The negative outlook reflects the rating agency's view of the government's ability to sustain reform momentum over the medium term.
 
"It indicates further downgrade potential if the government fails to address negative deviations from its budgetary consolidation path or implement the currently planned structural reforms," Mrsnik said.
 
Tuesday, the General Secretariat of the National Statistical Service of Greece announced that the production index in construction decreased 30.2% on an annual basis in the fourth quarter, compared to the 3.8% fall recorded a year ago. In the third quarter, the construction output was down 20.7%.
 
The production index of building construction dipped 31.6% annually in the fourth quarter, compared to the 25.7% fall in the third quarter. At the same time, the production index of civil engineering fell 29.3%.
 
On a sequential basis, the construction output increased 6.2% in the fourth quarter, slower than the 20.5% growth in the previous quarter. The production index of building construction and civil engineering grew by 11.3% and 3.5% respectively.