Germany Announces Solar Support Cut; First Solar (FSLR) Shares Move Up

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) shares moved higher on Thursday after initially sinking on news that Germany, the world's top solar market, announced it would cut supports for the renewable energy source.

Shares of First Solar, which has a manufacturing site in Germany and made 60 percent to 70 percent of its sales there last year, climbed near their highest level of the day at $136.23 after dropping nearly $3 to $132.30 when news of the cuts was reported.

Germany plans to cut solar financial supports for new roof and open-field sites from April by 16 percent to 17 percent, government and industrial sources told Reuters on Thursday. Additional cuts to the subsidies will be made from 2011 if solar projects amount to more than 3,000 megawatts and even more if they total more than 3,500 megawatts, the sources said.