European Markets Finished With Mixed Results Monday

(RTTNews) - The European markets ended the first session of the new trading week with mixed results. The markets posted gains during the final 2 sessions of the previous week, due to a string of better than expected economic reports from China. Investor sentiment was impacted by the weaker than expected Japanese GDP report on Monday.

Japan's gross domestic product added just 0.6 percent in the second quarter of 2013 compared to the previous three months, the Cabinet Office said in Monday's preliminary report. The headline figure missed forecasts for an increase of 0.9 percent.

The Italian parliament has granted final approval for a slew of measures proposed by the government to help the economy emerge from the ongoing recession, reports said. The package involves steps to limit bureaucracy, reorganize financial resources and improve the civil justice system.

The rescue package, which was introduced by Premier Enrico Letta in June, has undergone a series debates in the parliament before being approved.

The program envisages massive investments in public works projects, including the augmentation of the rail and road networks and the education infrastructure.

The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks increased by 0.04 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, added 0.10 percent.

The DAX of Germany climbed by 0.25 percent and the SMI of Switzerland gained 0.29 percent. The FTSE 100 of the U.K. dropped by 0.13 percent and the CAC 40 of France fell by 0.12 percent.

In Frankfurt, Rheinmetall dropped by 1.08 percent, despite a broker upgrade.

Fraport, which released traffic data for July, declined by 0.76 percent.

Internet service provider QSC surged by 10.01 percent. The company reported a 79 percent jump in second-quarter profit on lower costs and expenses, despite regulatory-induced revenue decline.

Bilfinger Berger climbed by 2.93 percent. The builder said profit in the second quarter declined 24 percent from the prior year, amid uncertain economic conditions, but backed its forecast for the year.

In Paris Technip increased by 1.71 percent after announcing new contract wins.

In London, H&T Group plunged by 22.58 percent. The pawnbroker reported a lower first-half profit amid tougher market conditions.

Prudential, which reported first-half results, gained 4.05 percent.

Royal Bank of Scotland advanced by 1.20 percent. Media reports released over the weekend suggest that the bank will remain a public company for another 5 years.

Capita declined by 0.88 percent, after Citigroup downgraded it to "Neutral" from "Buy."

Ladbrokes decreased by 2.61 percent, after JPMorgan downgraded the stock to ''Underweight'' from ''Neutral.''

Moneysupermarket.com, which received a broker downgrade, lost 3.78 percent.

Investment firm SVG Capital reported a significant increase in profit and net asset value for the first half of the year, sending the shares up by 4.67 percent.

Aukett Fitzroy Robinson surged by 47.83 percent, after the design services provider now sees profitability in 2013 to be comfortably higher than previous expectations.

Employment in the German manufacturing sector increased slightly from last year in June, preliminary data released by the Federal Statistical Office showed Monday. The number of persons employed in goods producing units, with fifty or more staff, grew 0.5 percent on an annual basis to around 5.2 million in June.

France's current account deficit narrowed in June from a month earlier, data released by the Bank of France revealed Monday. The shortfall on current account fell to EUR 1.4 billion in June from EUR 3.5 billion in May. The deficit on goods account fell to EUR 3.9 billion from EUR 5.9 billion in the previous month.

The pace of contraction in Greece's gross domestic product slowed in the second quarter of 2013, preliminary data from the Hellenic Statistical Authority showed Monday. The non-seasonally adjusted GDP decreased 4.6 percent year-on-year in the second quarter following a 5.6 percent contraction in the first quarter. The pace of decline in GDP has slowed for a third consecutive quarter. The economy is now in its sixth year of recession.