European stocks declined after Hungary warned of a "very grave" situation for its economy, reigniting concern the region's debt crisis is spreading. U.S. index futures and Asian shares fell.
Societe Generale SA and Raiffeisen International Bank Holding AG tumbled more than 6 percent, leading a gauge of banks stocks lower. BP Plc limited declines in the
Stoxx Europe 600 Index after the company lowered a cap over a damaged Gulf of Mexico oil well in its latest attempt to control the oil spill.
The
Stoxx 600 fell 0.4 percent to 247.91 at 1:12 p.m. in London, trimming this week's advance to 1.7 percent. The gauge has fallen 8.9 percent from this year's high on April 15 amid concern a European sovereign-debt crisis that started in Greece may hamper growth.
"There is no question that these sovereign-risk concerns have not gone away," said
Angus Campbell, head of sales at Capital Spreads in London. "There is still major underlying concern and the bond market is still pricing-in risk."
A U.S. Labor Department report due at 8:30 a.m. in Washington may show payrolls climbed by 536,000 in May, the most since 1983, according to the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The jobless rate is forecast to fall to 9.8 percent from 9.9 percent the previous month.
'Manipulated' Figures
European stocks erased earlier gains and futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index retreated 0.7 percent after a spokesman for Hungarian Prime Minister
Viktor Orban said the previous government "manipulated" figures and "lied" about the state of the economy.
"It's no exaggeration" to talk about a default, spokesman
Peter Szijjarto said today at a news conference in Budapest. A fact-finding committee, headed by State Secretary
Mihaly Varga, will likely present preliminary figures on the state of the economy over the weekend, he said.
"You simply cannot talk like this in these markets," said
Timothy Ash, head of emerging-market research at Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, wrote in an e-mailed comment. "Not sure what the Hungarians are doing at the moment, but the new government needs to think a bit more clearly about communication with the market."
The
MSCI Asia Pacific Index also retreated today, falling 0.4 percent, after the world's two-largest copper producers said China's plans to curb growth will lower demand for the metal.
SocGen Slides
Societe Generale, France's second-largest bank by market value, slumped 6.1 percent to 32.10 euros. Austria's Raiffeisen sank 8 percent to 31.26 euros. UniCredit SpA, Italy's biggest bank, declined 5 percent to 1.57 euros.
CNBC reported that Societe Generale is the subject of unconfirmed rumors of a derivatives loss, without saying where it got the information. Societe Generale declined to comment on the report.
BP rose 3.1 percent to 445.75 pence. Europe's second- largest company will know in 12 to 24 hours whether its latest attempt to control the oil spill has succeeded, Chief Executive Officer
Tony Hayward said.
"There's always a risk as to whether it will be a success," he told reporters in Houston late yesterday.
BP shares have slumped more than 30 percent since the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded on April 20 and sank two days later, killing 11 workers and causing the oil leak.
Valeo SA rallied 4.2 percent to 24.50 euros after the company said it's working with financial advisers to evaluate options to yield the "highest possible value" as part of an industrial strategy that was approved by the board.
The New York Times' Dealbook reported that options include a major unit sale to help reduce debt, a leveraged buyout to take the company private, and a merger with a North American rival in a stock-for-stock deal. The company has hired Bank of America Merrill Lynch as an adviser, the New York Times said, cited two people with direct knowledge of the matter.
Rockhopper Exploration jumped 35 percent to 323 pence after the oil explorer said its Sea Lion find near the Falkland Islands contained medium gravity crude.
Rival Falkland Oil & Gas Ltd. climbed 12 percent to 208 pence and Borders & Southern Petroleum Plc surged 8.9 percent to 73.5 pence.
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