European stocks were lower on Monday as global coronavirus developments and a sharp fall in U.S. oil prices were in focus.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 pared earlier gains to dip 0.8% lower, with sectors and major bourses largely in negative territory. Oil and gas stocks, down 2.8%, led losses, while health care was the only sector to trade above the flatline.
The move downward came after U.S. crude futures for May plunged more than 35% to $11.50 a barrel. Traders continue to fret over a slump in oil demand due to the coronavirus pandemic, with one analyst describing the situation stateside to CNBC as “quite dire.”
Coronavirus developments also remain in focus with more than 2.4 million infected worldwide and 165,903 deaths globally, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
Meanwhile, economic data out of Europe on Monday showed that the euro zone’s trade surplus with the rest of the world grew to 23 billion euros ($25.1 billion) in February, up from 18.5 billion euros a year before.
Separately, IHS Markit revealed Monday that a third of U.K. households had already suffered a drop in income because of the coronavirus crisis, with researchers recording the weakest income reading for Britain since the survey began in 2009.
It comes as the U.K.’s online furlough scheme went live, with the CEO of British tax authority HMRC telling the BBC 67,000 claims had been made in the first 30 minutes.
Looking at individual stocks, Italian hearing aid manufacturer Amplifon gained more than 5% to lead the European benchmark.
Philips was up 4% after the Dutch health technology company said it expected to return to growth in the second half of the year.
At the other end of the index, Norway’s Mowi slumped toward the bottom of the benchmark after it missed first-quarter earnings expectations and postponed its dividend. Shares slipped 8%.
Stocks globally got a boost late last week after a report said patients with severe virus symptoms were quickly recovering after using remdesivir, a Gilead Sciences drug.
— CNBC’s Eustance Huang contributed reporting to this story.
Source: Business - cnbc.com
