European Shares Dented by Weak Earnings but Syngenta Surges on Deal

London: European shares fell on Wednesday, as weak earnings from some leading companies weighed on markets, although Syngenta surged after ChemChina agreed on a $43 billion bid for the Swiss seeds and pesticides group.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index, which fell 2 per cent in the previous session, fell 0.6 per cent in early session trading.

The euro zone's blue-chip Euro STOXX 50 index fell 0.8 per cent, Britain's FTSE 100 declined 0.5 per cent while Germany's DAX fell 1 per cent.

Finnish state-controlled utility Fortum slumped 8.9 per cent after posting a larger-than-expected drop in fourth-quarter earnings, while Dutch telecoms group KPN also fell after reporting worse-than-expected core earnings.

However, Syngenta rose 6.8 per cent after China's state-owned ChemChina said it would make an agreed $43 billion bid for the Swiss company, marking the largest ever overseas acquisition by a Chinese company.