Escalating tariff tit-for-tat pummels European autos, industrials stocks
Reuters
Published Jun 19, 2018 08:49
Escalating tariff tit-for-tat pummels European autos, industrials stocks
LONDON (Reuters) - An escalating protectionist tit-for-tat between the U.S. and China extended a selloff in European shares on Tuesday with autos, mining and technology stocks in the eye of the storm.
Europe's main equity benchmarks sank 1 to 1.7 percent by 0825 GMT after Trump warned Washington would impose a 10 percent tariff on $200 billion of Chinese goods after Beijing decided to raise tariffs on $50 billion in U.S. goods.
The pan-European STOXX 600 (STOXX) fell 1.2 percent to its lowest since April 26, while euro zone stocks (STOXXE) tumbled 1.4 percent.
Germany's DAX (GDAXI), home to some of the world's biggest carmakers which Trump has explicitly targeted in his tariffs rhetoric, suffered the worst fall, down 1.7 percent.
Autos stocks were the biggest drag, with Daimler (DE:DAIGn), Volkswagen (DE:VOWG_p) and BMW (DE:BMWG) down 1.5 to 2.7 percent.
The STOXX 600 autos sector (SXAP) hit its lowest in seven months as traders priced in higher tariffs.
Multinational sportswear company Adidas (DE:ADSGn) also fell 1.9 percent, as the fear of an end to unfettered access to global markets also bruised luxury stocks Kering (PA:PRTP), Hermes (PA:HRMS), LVMH (PA:LVMH) and Moncler (MI:MONC).
Industrial conglomerate Siemens (DE:SIEGn) was one of the biggest drags on the STOXX along with French planemaker Airbus (PA:AIR).
Mining shares (SXPP) tumbled 2.1 percent, tracking a decline in London copper prices on the escalating trade tensions.
Highly valued tech stocks were also selling off as investors shed the sectors that have led the strong equity rally. The tech sector (SX8P) sank 2.2 percent, having hit a 17-year high as recently as Friday.
In single stock moves, the most impressive fall was in the UK retail sector.
Debenhams (L:DEB) shares plummeted 19 percent after the department store warned on profits again, blaming its poor trading on increased competitor discounting and weakness in its key markets.
Get The App
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.