Netherlands stocks finished the trading day in negative territory on Thursday, with sector-level weakness in Basic Materials, Oil & Gas and Real Estate driving the modest decline. At the close in Amsterdam, the AEX index was down 0.12%.
There was a mixed picture among individual large-cap names. The session's top performers on the AEX were DSM Firmenich AG (AS:DSFIR), up 2.81% or 2.10 points to 76.72; BE Semiconductor Industries NV (AS:BESI), which gained 2.48% or 7.70 points to finish at 317.80; and ASM International NV (AS:ASMI), rising 2.34% or 24.50 points to 1,070.50 in late trade.
On the downside, Relx PLC (AS:REL) led losses, sliding 4.02% or 1.14 points to close at 27.22. ArcelorMittal SA (AS:MT) fell 3.39% or 1.96 points to 55.86, while IMCD NV (AS:IMCD) declined 3.25% or 2.82 points to end the session at 83.90.
Across the exchange, declining issues outnumbered advancing ones by 50 to 47, with 12 stocks unchanged at the close.
Two constituents reached fresh record highs during the session. Shares of BE Semiconductor Industries NV moved to an all-time high, closing up 2.48% at 317.80, while ASM International NV also hit an all-time high, up 2.34% to 1,070.50.
Market volatility for the index, as measured by the AEX Volatility gauge, was flat for the day - unchanged at 21.09.
Commodity markets saw meaningful declines on the session. Crude oil for July delivery fell 2.63% or 2.02 to trade at $74.77 a barrel. Brent oil for August delivery dropped 2.29% or 1.82 to $77.73 a barrel. Precious metals also eased, with the August Gold Futures contract down 3.08% or 134.80 to trade at $4,246.60 a troy ounce.
In foreign exchange and dollar measures, EUR/USD was unchanged 0.30% to 1.15, while EUR/GBP was unchanged 0.22% to 0.87. The US Dollar Index Futures rose 0.68% to 100.54.
Market takeaway - The Amsterdam benchmark experienced a small downward move as sector losses in Basic Materials, Oil & Gas and Real Estate offset gains among select technology and specialty names. Volatility on the AEX held steady, while commodity prices retraced on the session.