Netherlands stocks ended slightly lower on Thursday, as losses clustered in the Industrials, Basic Materials and Real Estate sectors pressured the market. The AEX closed the session down 0.02% in Amsterdam.
Top gainers
- Koninklijke KPN NV (AS:KPN) led advances on the index, rising 2.79% - up 0.11 points to finish at 4.09.
- Shell PLC (AS:SHEL) added 2.47%, a rise of 0.78 points to close at 32.42.
- Heineken (AS:HEIN) firmed by 1.78%, up 1.20 points to 68.80 at the close.
Largest decliners
- BE Semiconductor Industries NV (AS:BESI) was the session's weakest performer, sliding 4.07% - a fall of 6.90 points to 162.55.
- Relx PLC (AS:REL) dropped 3.39%, down 1.06 points to 30.22.
- Wolters Kluwer (AS:WLSNc) declined 2.58%, falling 2.10 points to 79.22.
On the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, falling issues outnumbered advancers by 54 to 45, while 9 stocks finished unchanged. The session included notable lows for a couple of names: Relx PLC fell to a 52-week low at 30.22, reflecting the 3.39% decrease, and Wolters Kluwer closed at a three-year low of 79.22 after a 2.58% decline.
Volatility and breadth
The AEX Volatility index, which tracks the implied volatility of AEX options, was unchanged on the day at 21.09.
Commodities and currencies
Commodities saw several meaningful moves. Crude oil for March delivery gained 3.12% - up $1.97 - to $65.18 a barrel. Brent oil for April delivery climbed 2.81%, a $1.89 increase to $69.26 a barrel. In contrast, the April Gold Futures contract fell 0.36%, losing $19.36 to trade at $5,320.84 a troy ounce.
In currency markets, EUR/USD was effectively flat, changing by 0.03% to trade at 1.20, while EUR/GBP registered an unchanged move of 0.02% to 0.87. The US Dollar Index Futures eased 0.14% to 96.14.
This session left the AEX marginally lower overall, with gains concentrated in a handful of large-cap names while a greater number of stocks declined. Volatility remained steady as commodity markets showed mixed direction.