International stocks trading in New York closed lower
Wednesday.
The BNY Mellon index of American depositary receipts fell 0.75%
to 150.64. The European index decreased 0.68% to 146.41, the Asian
index dropped 0.94% to 161.39, the Latin American index fell 0.82%
to 234.42 and the emerging markets index declined 0.72% to 282.30.
Delhaize Group (DEG, DELB.BT) was among the companies with ADRs
that traded actively.
Delhaize ADRs fell 7.1% to $20.59 after the Belgian food
retailer posted a sharp rise in first-quarter revenue, boosted by
the stronger dollar and robust sales at its U.S. grocery chains.
However Rabobank said earnings missed expectations on a weak
performance in Belgium, while Jefferies said the latest results
show Delhaize's momentum in the U.S. is slowing.
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (BABA) Executive Chairman Jack Ma
said the Chinese e-commerce giant has been expanding too quickly,
and that he plans to cap the size of the company's workforce at
current levels for the time being. ADRs fell 3.1% to $82.45.
ADRs of ABB Ltd. (ABB, ABBN.VX) rose 14 cents to $22.20 after
the Swiss industrial giant posted better-than-expected
first-quarter earnings. A host of big contracts helped the world's
largest builder of electrical power grids weather the headwinds
caused by a stronger dollar.
ADRs of Barclays PLC (BCS, BARC.LN) fell five cents to $16.04
after the U.K. bank boosted its expected bill for foreign-exchange
fines to more than 2 billion British pounds ($3.07 billion) as it
recorded a first-quarter charge of 800 million British pounds. The
provision overshadowed what Barclays said had otherwise been it
best quarter in years, once such one-time charges were stripped
out.
ADRs of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA (BBVA, BBVA.MC) fell
2.1% to $19.86 after Spain's No. 2 lender by market value reported
that its first-quarter profit more than doubled on improved lending
income and stronger profit in Mexico, countering weaker returns in
South America due to currency turmoil in Venezuela. However, net
interest income--a key driver of profit for retail banks such as
BBVA--missed analysts' expectations.
ADRs of British American Tobacco PLC (BTI, BATS.LN) fell 1.7% to
$111.09 after the maker of Lucky Strike, Dunhill and Kent
cigarettes said smokers around the world continued to feel pressure
on their disposable income, resulting in a big fall in
first-quarter revenue and sales volumes.
Eni SpA (E, ENI.MI) reported a steep drop in first-quarter
earnings as the global plunge in crude prices cut into
profitability at the Italian oil company's main exploration and
production unit, offsetting improvements at other divisions and a
lower tax rate. However in a note to clients, Bernstein said that
"Overall the results show that the business model is very resilient
to the oil price fall and that the restructuring plan under the new
CEO is well advanced." ADRs rose five cents to $38.22.
Brazil's Vale SA (VALE, VALE3.BR, VALE5.BR, VALE5.FR), the
world's biggest iron producer, is in talks with Chinese
shipbuilders and leasing companies to build around 50 giant bulk
carriers that would move iron ore from Brazil to China, The Wall
Street Journal reported Wednesday. ADRs fell 5.6% to $7.26.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
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