European shares flat

European shares held steady above a technical resistance level for the second day on Wednesday in thin volume as investors stayed away after the resumption of talks to stave off a disorderly debt default by Greece.
French bank Societe Generale, a big creditor to Greece, rose 5.3 percent after traders cited a news report that regulators were telling France's main banks to boost Greek debt provisions, which it said was a conservative move by the Bank of France to keep them relatively well capitalised.
Traders said stocks stayed above the technical resistance level of 1,028 - its October 2011 high from the rally that started in September 2011 - as investors were taking the view that a deal in the debt talks was more likely than not, given the unconscionable costs of failure.
Analysts have warned that a disorderly default could cause financial havoc and tip the global economy into recession, which would in turn bring a slowdown in company profits. "The markets to some extent are hanging on and would have completely sold off if they thought Greece could not come to an agreement," said Mike Lenhoff, chief strategist and head of research at Brewin Dolphin Securities.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares closed up 0.02 percent at 1,034.64 points after being as low as 1,025.15 and as high as 1,037.77 in volume 83.4 percent of its 90-day daily average. The index also remained above its 200-day moving average, a momentum indicator that defines possible support and resistance areas.
European stocks quickly fell into negative territory after IMF sources later said it was estimating it needed to raise up to $600 billion to lend to struggling countries in the eurozone debt crisis. In a thin market, however, there was heavy selling in Tullow Oil, down 4.2 percent, after a trading update showed production was declining for the oil explorer and net asset values (NAV) were likely to fall as a result. Volume was strong for the oil explorer at more than double its 90-day daily average.