Major European Markets Close Weak

European markets ended notably lower on Tuesday following a sell-off in shares of technology firms and several top name companies from other sectors due to concerns about valuation.

Also, despite optimism about economic recovery and some fairly upbeat earnings reports, the mood was cautious due to rising worries about a surge in coronavirus cases in several countries.

The pan European Stoxx 600 slid 1.43%. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 shed 0.67%, Germany’s DAX declined 2.49%, France’s CAC 40 lost 0.89%, and Switzerland’s SMI ended 1.33% down.

In the UK market, ICP, Ocado Group, Pearson, 3i Group, Aveva Group, Scottish Mortgage, Flutter Entertainment, Weir Group, Taylor Wimpey, Hikma Pharmaceuticals, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Avast and Just Eat Takeaway shed 3 to 5%.

Standard Life, Standard Chartered, Barclays Group, HSBC Holdings, Entain, Rentokil Initial, Melrose Industries and Barratt Developments also declined sharply.

In France, Bouygues declined nearly 5%. Airbus Group, Faurecia, Dassault Systemes, WorldLine, Societe Generale, STMicroElectronics and Renault lost 2 to 3%, while Publicis Groupe, Vinci, Total, Unibail Rodamco and Technip moved higher.

Dassault Aviation shares rose sharply after Egypt’s defense ministry decided to purchase an additional 30 Rafale fighter jets to equip its force.

In the German market, Infineon Technologies tumbled nearly 6% after it warned of continued bottlenecks in a manufacturing supply chain that’s running at “full speed.”

Merck, Vonovia, Volkswagen, MTU Aero Engines, Thyssenkrupp, Siemens, SAP, Deutsche Bank, Deutsche Wohnen, Adidas, RWE, Daimler, Continental and BMW declined 2.5 to 5.2%

Swiss stock Adecco Group declined 5% after the company, which posted a profit in the first quarter, cautioned that COVID-19 related uncertainties remain elevated.

In economic releases, British mortgage lending logged its biggest increase on record in March largely driven by the extension of stamp tax duty holiday, the Bank of England said.

The lending secured on dwellings increased by GBP 11.8 billion in March, which was the strongest since the series began in April 1993.

The UK manufacturing sector grew at the fastest pace on record in April underpinned by production and new orders, final data from IHS Markit showed.

The Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 60.9 in April from 58.9 in March and was above the flash estimate of 60.7.

Output increased for the eleventh straight month in April. The latest increase was attributed to a loosening of lockdown restrictions, improved demand and rising backlogs of work.

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