PARIS: European stocks extended a two-week sell-off yesterday as investors booked profits, wary that the US Federal Reserve will start winding down its stimulus programme soon.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares fell 0.9 percent to 1,244.66 points, a level not seen since mid-October. European stocks trimmed their losses in late trade after data showed more Americans filed claims for unemployment benefits last week, reversing three weeks of declines.
Investor sentiment was also hurt by data that showed euro zone industrial output dropped at its worst monthly rate in more than a year in October, a sign the region’s recovery remains fragile.
Around Europe, UK’s FTSE 100 index fell 1 percent, Germany’s DAX index down 0.7 percent, and France’s CAC 40 down 0.4 percent. The euro zone’s blue-chip Euro STOXX 50 index fell 0.7 percent at 2,928.12 points.
Shares in struggling carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen sank 7.6 percent, after it announced a big writedown and confirmed that it was mulling a capital increase. The stock was set to further sink today. After the European closing bell, General Motors Co said it would sell its entire 7 percent stake in Peugeot through a private placement to institutional investors.
Reuters
