Stock exchange traded funds fell sharply Monday on worries over Europe’s finances while weakness in Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) and Chevron (NYSE: CVX) pushed energy ETFs lower by nearly 2%.
ETFs tracking U.S. stocks and the euro fell Monday as worries over the debt problems in Europe’s periphery sapped sentiment. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSEArca: SPY) was down more than 1% while CurrencyShares Euro Trust (NYSEArca: FXE), which follows the movement of the euro versus the dollar, slid nearly 1%.
ETFs that invest in food-sector stocks were on Monday’s news buffet after quarterly results from Krispy Kreme (NYSE: KKD) and Campbell Soup (NYSE: CPB). Krispy Kreme shares rallied while Campbell fell in the wake of the earnings reports. Campbell’s profit was stronger than expected but Deutsche Bank analysts predicted “a muted reaction given weak soup results.”
ETFs that invest in gold and silver followed equities lower on Monday as markets turned their attention to Europe’s debt crisis following credit downgrades of Greece and Italy.
PowerShares QQQ (NasdaqGM: QQQ) was down more than 1% as the tech-heavy ETF followed the major stock indicators lower on European debt jitters. Top holdings in the Nasdaq-100 ETF, Apple (NasdaqGS: AAPL) and Cisco (NasdaqGS: CSCO), were also off.
Financial ETFs declined Monday in the U.S. as renewed concerns over sovereign debt in Europe roiled markets. Citigroup (NYSE: C) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) were both down more than 1%.
Gregory A. Clay contributed to this article.
