European stock markets drop at open

Europe’s main stock markets retreated at the start of trading Wednesday following losses in Asia on poorly-received Chinese data.

London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index fell 0.5 percent to 7,483.19 points.

In the eurozone, Frankfurt’s DAX index lost 0.7 percent to 15,931.92 points and the Paris CAC 40 dropped 0.7 percent to 7,320.41.

“There are fresh concerns about the global economy powering down as data from China’s service sector underlines how tepid the post-pandemic recovery has become, just as trade tensions between Beijing and Washington ramp up,” noted Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.

“This has put indices in Europe on the back foot, following falls in Asia.” (BSS/AFP)