European Shares Tumble On Tariff Worries; Auto And Tech Stocks Worst Hit
(RTTNews) - European stocks fell sharply on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, and promised to make similar moves against the European Union.
It is feared that a potential trade war could weigh on global economic growth and hit the earnings of major companies.
In economic releases, the final release of the eurozone manufacturing PMI for January and flash CPI data for the region are awaited later in the day.
The pan European STOXX 600 was down 1.2 percent at 533.01 after ending 0.1 percent higher on Friday.
The German DAX fell 1.6 percent and France's CAC 40 shed 1.4 percent. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 was down 1.3 percent despite Trump indicating that the U.K. might be able to dodge tariffs.
Tariff worries and signs of intense Chinese competition weighed on automakers, with BMW, Mercedes Benz, Volkswagen and Stellantis plummeting 4-6 percent.
Technology stocks also suffered broad-based losses, with Infineon Technologies tumbling 3.2 percent and ASML Holding falling 2.5 percent.
Julius Baer plunged more than 10 percent as the Swiss bank announced plans to cut its workforce by about 5 percent as part of savings measures under new chief executive Stefan Bollinger.
Sandoz slumped 4.6 percent. The generic pharmaceutical company has appointed Peter Stenico as the new President Region International and member of the Sandoz Executive Committee.