(Updating with details on single stocks)
MILAN (Thomson Financial) - Share prices closed sharply lower on continuing credit woes and a particularly weak start on Wall Street, with small-caps sold off heavily and Prysmian slumping almost 10 pct.
The Mibtel index was down 2.46 pct at 29,005 points while the S&P/Mib shed 2.40 pct to 37,612.
Volume traded was an estimated 5.803 bln eur.
'It's been a bad day all round but the small-caps took a real battering as US investors sold them off to lock in euro-dollar gains,' one Milan-based trader said.
Prysmian slumped 9.28 pct to 16.44 eur. A trader said brokers had raised their target prices and investors had bought in before the recent placement by Goldman Sachs of a 9.9 pct stake. 'Following the placement liquidity has dried up and the stock is being sold,' he said.
Impregilo dropped 8.03 pct to 3.99 eur as the construction sector in Europe fell back sharply. Buzzi fell 4.39 pct to 18.2 while Italcementi was 3.58 pct lower at 12.79.
Seat PG fell 5.65 pct to 0.317 eur after its CEO said the stakes of the group's main fund shareholders are no longer for sale.
Fiat dropped 5.35 pct to 18.43 eur on concerns about slowing economic growth while Autogrill tumbled 5.59 pct to 11.41.
Banking stocks felt the impact of Northern Rock's slide in the UK and a decidedly weak start for Citigroup in the US. In the US Goldman Sachs today downgraded large banks and estimated that Citigroup would have to write down 15 bln due to its exposure to risky debt over the next two quarters.
BPM fell 5.4 pct to 9.89 eur, Banco Popolare lost 3.35 pct to 13.85 while the bigger caps UniCredit fell 3.1 pct to 5.34 and Intesa Sanpaolo fell 1.26 pct to 5.11.
The market also felt the effect of dividend payment by six big companies as Atlantia (down 2.85 pct at 25.54 eur), Enel (down 2.98 pct at 7.98), Mediobanca (down 6.92 pct at 15.33), Mediolanum (down 4.43 pct at 4.78), Tenaris (down 3.15 pct at 15.88), and Terna (down 3.10 pct at 2.61) all went ex dividend.
The only stock to buck the trend was Telecom Italia, up 0.69 pct at 2.18 eur after reports said that its new management could be announced tomorrow. stephen.jewkes@thomson.com sj/ajb/sj/jfr COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2007. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.
© 2007 AFX News
