European Markets Dropped After Greek "No" Vote

(RTTNews) - The European markets ended Monday's session in the red after the Greek people voted to reject the austerity measures proposed by the country's international creditors. Financial stocks were among the weakest performers after the overwhelming 'No' vote in Sunday's referendum.

The "no" vote on the referendum has added to recent concerns about Greece defaulting and exiting from the eurozone. EU leaders are now awaiting proposals from Greece Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.

The ECB's policymaking governing council will hold a conference call today to consider whether to continue providing emergency funding for Greek banks. Eurozone nations will hold an emergency summit on Tuesday to discuss the Greek referendum result.

While Greece and its international creditors are expected to try to restart negotiations on a new bailout agreement, the ECB's response would be crucial in determining the extent of contagion.

In a surprise move, Greece Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said Monday that he is resigning despite the Greek people rejecting proposals by the creditors in Sunday's referendum, as requested by his government. Euclid Tsakalotos has been named as his replacement.

The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks decreased by 2.32 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, lost 1.14 percent.

The DAX of Germany dropped by 1.52 percent and the CAC 40 of France fell by 2.01 percent. The FTSE of the U.K. declined by 0.76 percent and the SMI of Switzerland finished lower by 0.56 percent.

In Frankfurt, Utility RWE fell by 2.59 percent on a report it is considering a restructuring of units to reduce costs. E.ON also weakened by 2.61 percent.

Shares of Deutsche Post increased by 2.20 percent. The postal operator reached a deal with trade union Verdi over pay and working conditions.

Commerzbank dropped by 3.90 percent and Deutsche Bank lost 3.12 percent.

In Paris, BNP Paribas declined by 4.24 percent and Societe Generale surrendered 3.78 percent. Credit Agricole also finished lower by 2.77 percent.

In London, Rolls-Royce Holdings tumbled by 6.30 percent after the company cut its full-year profit guidance and scrapped its first ever share buyback program.

Low-cost airline EasyJet Plc dipped by 0.25 percent, after posting improved traffic figures for June.

Royal Bank of Scotland decreased by 3.56 percent and Barclays lost 1.58 percent. Lloyds Banking Group also declined by 1.16 percent.

Eurozone investor confidence improved from a four-month low despite Greece crisis, survey data from the think tank Sentix showed Monday. The investor confidence index rose unexpectedly to 18.5 in July from 17.1 in June. It was forecast to fall to 16.

Germany's factory orders decreased for the first time in three months in May reflecting the weakness in domestic market.

Factory orders fell 0.2 percent month-on-month in May, in contrast to a 2.2 percent increase in April, which was revised up from a 1.4 percent growth, Destatis reported Monday. This was the first decline in three months. But it was slower than the expected decrease of 0.4 percent.

Germany's construction sector activity grew at the weakest pace in five months in June as new orders declined, survey data from Markit Economics showed Monday. The seasonally adjusted Purchasing Managers' Index, or PMI, for the construction sector, declined to 50.7 in June from 50.8 in the previous month.

Activity in the U.S. service sector expanded at a modestly faster rate in the month of June, according to a report released by the Institute for Supply Management on Monday, although the index of activity in the sector rose by slightly less than expected.

The ISM said its non-manufacturing index inched up to 56.0 in June from 55.7 in May, with a reading above 50 indicating growth in the service sector. Economists had expected the index to rise to 56.4.