Interest rate uncertainty clouds eurozone horizon

Selective stockpicking in the European markets has been the only way to achieve positive returns over the year to 8 August, as there has been wide diversity among the top performers. The top performing European sector for the year to 13 August has been machinery, up 30% in euro terms, compared with an overall fall of 9.72% in the Bloomberg European 500 index. Other top performing sectors include tobacco, up 10.31%; autos, up 8.99%; metal and mining, with a rise of 5.07%; and building materials, having risen 4.48%. This compares with the more homogeneous bottom five performers: media, wh...