* FTSEurofirst 300 down 3.9 percent
* Banks fall after Spain bailout
* Autos down as Obama rejects turn around plans
By Joanne Frearson
LONDON, March 30 (Reuters) - European shares closed lower on
Monday as banks fell after Spain had to rescue regional savings
bank CCM and auto stocks weighed after the Obama administration
regected General Motors' <GM.N> and Chrysler's turnaround plans.
The FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of top European
companies closed down 3.9 percent at 709.10 points. This is the
second day of consecutive losses for the FTSEurofirst 300, but
the index has closed higher for the past three out of four
weeks.
Financials were major losers on the index after it emerged
another European bank would need state aid.
"The banks have had a really big run recently ... now it
goes back to how much of a structural turnaround have they
really made. ... People's risk appetite is not such to keep
pushing," said Philip Lawlor, strategist at Nomura.
On Sunday, the Bank of Spain said it will take over the
running of regional savings bank Caja Castilla la Mancha and
provide 9 billion euros ($12.1 billion) in government guarantees
to back the bank. []
Banco Santander <SAN.MC>, Banco Popular <POP.MC> and BBVA
<BBVA.MC> were down 4.4 to 7.7 percent.
Meanwhile, the British government will provide 1.6 billion
pounds ($2.27 billion) in net financing to Nationwide building
society for the rescue of Scottish lender Dunfermline.
[]
Barclays <BARC.L> sagged 14.2 percent following a report
that it had opted not to take part in a government asset
insurance scheme.
Barclays announced after the market close it would not take
part in Britain's asset protection scheme and that its trading
performance in 2009 continued to be strong and confirmed its
capital position and resources were expected to meet the capital
requirements of the Financial Services Authority.
UBS <UBSN.VX> was down 10.8 percent after Swiss newspaper
Sonntag said on Sunday that UBS would write down at least
another $2 billion on illiquid assets and cut a further 8,000
jobs []. UBS declined to comment on the report.
AUTOS FALL AS OBAMA REJECTS TURNAROUND PLANS
Automakers were in the doldrums. The Obama administration
pledged only to fund GM's operations for the next 60 days while
it develops a sweeping restructuring plan, instead of granting
GM's request for up to a further $16 billion in loans.
[]
BMW <BMWG.DE>, Daimler <DAIGn.DE>, Fiat <FIA.MI>, Peugeot
<PEUP.PA>, Renault <RENA.PA> and Volkswagen <VOWG.DE> slipped
5.4 to 10.6 percent.
"If GM goes into Chapter 11, that could have implications
for Europe with Vauxhall. But let's not forget we had a splendid
rally, and the technical indicators showed that, short-term, the
market was looking overstretched," said Bob Parker, vice
chairman of asset management at Credit Suisse.
Chrysler, controlled by Cerberus Capital Management
[], was given 30 days to complete an alliance with Italy's
Fiat or face a cut-off of its government funding that could
force its liquidation.
Oil stocks were lower as crude <CLc1> fell nearly 5.5
percent. BG Group <BG.L>, BP <BP.L>, Royal Dutch Shell <RDSb.L>
and Total <TOTF.PA> fell 3.5 to 5.2 percent.
Miners slipped as copper <MCU3=LX> lost 2.8 percent. Anglo
American <AAL.L>, Antofagasta <ANTO.L>, BHP Billiton <BLT.L>,
Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation <ENRC.L>, Rio Tinto
<RIO.L> and Xstrata <XTA.L> were down 6.3-10.5 percent.
"Markets are very weak... they have had a very good run so
people are anxious to lock in profits. As you close out the
quarter, I think anyone that has made money is looking to lock
in the profits, that is really what we are seeing today," added
Lawlor.
Across Europe, the FTSE 100 <> index was down 3.5
percent, Germany's DAX <> was down 5.1 percent and
France's CAC 40 <> was 4.3 percent lower.
(Additional reporting Brian Gorman; Editing by Hans Peters)
