Europe stock markets pressured by commodities (Reuters) (23-05-2008)

LONDON, May 23 (Reuters) - European stocks were declining on Friday, as losses in commodities pressured markets with oil trading below recent record highs and investors worried about regulatory scrutiny for a big acquisition in the mining sector.

But Deutsche Postbank and its owner, Deutsche Post, gained on reports that Commerzbank and Allianz were planning a joint bid for Postbank.

At 0833 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 benchmark was down 0.8 percent at 1,335.87 points, led lower by miners Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton , which fell more than 2 percent on worries that BHP's bid for Rio would run into regulatory trouble.

While according to analysts inflation continues to be investors' main focus, the mood is negative due to data showing that euro zone services sector growth have declined much more than expected in May as a strong euro and high oil prices ate away at companies' margins, while inflation pressures held at worrying levels.

The RBS/NTC Flash Eurozone Purchasing Managers Index for services companies, ranging from hotels to banks, fell to 50.6 in May from 52.0 in April, matching a 4-1/2 year low reached in January, and well below the 51.7 forecast by economists.

Across Europe, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.6 percent, Germany's DAX lost 0.4 percent and France's CAC fell 1 percent, weighed by auto and insurance stocks.

  SourceReuters