Oil and gas stocks ended more than 5 per cent lower for the day, seeing their worst day in more than three years as oil prices plunged to their lowest since 2017 after Russia rejected a steep OPEC output cut. Crude prices were already pressured by concerns over waning global demand.The banks index underperformed its peers for the week, shedding about 8.8 per cent. The index touched its lowest point since 2009 amid a flurry of virus-related disruptions and sinking bond yields.
Deutsche Bank fell 3.8 per cent and Commerzbank slid 7.2 per cent as the flight to safety pushed Germany's benchmark 10-year Bund yield to record lows. Planemaker Airbus dived 7.6 per cent as it failed to win any new aircraft orders in February - further evidence of disruption across aviation industries due to the spread of coronavirus.Investors have almost fully priced in a 10 basis points cut by the European Central Bank next week. However, a recent Reuters poll of economists showed the ECB will not cut rates, underscoring the central bank's limited policy options, given its deposit rate is already at a negative 0.5 per cent.
Infineon Technologies AG fell 5.5 per cent after reports that US officials recommended blocking the German chipmaker's proposed US$10 billion deal to buy Cypress Semiconductor Corp on security risks. Among the few gainers, carmaker Continental AG and airline Air France both marked modest gains for the day as they recovered from multi-year lows.
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