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European sharemarkets ended down on the last day of the trading week as oil prices surged to a new record over US$26 per barrel.
The high oil prices saw shares in vehicle manufacturers and airlines drop, led lower by Ryanair and Porshe. Financial stocks and insurance companies were also down, with Allianz, the world's biggest insurer, announcing it needs to raise US$12.5 billion to cover losses.
At the close of trading on Friday, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of pan-European blue chips lost 18.2 points, or 1.337 percent, to close at 1,342.68, while the UK's FTSE 100 index dropped 68.73 points, or 0.97 percent, to close at 7003.17.
France's CAC index lost 95.02 points, or 1.88 percent, to close at 4960.56, while, Germany's DAX index shed 4.35 points, or 0.06 percent, to close at 7071.90.
On the commodity markets, Brent Crude oil gained US$1.71 or 1.4 percent, to be worth US$124.17, while on the Forex Gold Index, gold dropped US$1 or 0.1 percent, to close at US$876.00.
(c) NewsRoom 2008
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