European Shares Subdued On Chinese Demand Concerns

(RTTNews) - European stocks were subdued on Monday after three straight sessions of gains.

A cautious undertone prevailed as an attempt on former U.S. President Donald Trump's life injected fresh uncertainty into an already tumultuous presidential campaign.

On the positive side, Eurostat data showed industrial production in the euro area fell less than expected in May.

Seasonally adjusted industrial production decreased by 0.6 percent in the month while analysts expected a 1.0 percent decline.

The pan European STOXX 600 was down 0.1 percent at 523.40 after climbing 0.9 percent on Friday.

The German DAX slid 0.2 percent, France's CAC 40 shed 0.3 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was marginally lower.

China-related LVMH fell 1.7 percent, Hermes International gave up 1 percent and Kering lost nearly 4 percent after data showed China's economy grew much slower than expected in the second quarter.

Communications technologist Ericsson fell 2.1 percent after it struck a multi-year cross-licensing patent agreement with handset vendor Oppo.

Swatch shares plunged nearly 11 percent. The Swiss manufacturer of watches and jewelry reported a decline in sales for the first half due to a sharp drop in demand for luxury goods in China.

British online grocer and tech company Ocado plummeted 8.6 percent as broker Bernstein downgraded the stock to 'underperform'.

ME Group International, a vending machine operator, rose 1.1 percent after reporting a robust performance for the six months ending 30 April 2024.

Brunner Investment Trust added 1 percent after reporting a rise in half-year profit. Robert Walters declined 2.3 percent. The recruitment company has reported a decline in gross profit over the first half of the year and warned that tough macro conditions are likely to last longer than expected.

BayWa AG, a trading logistics, and supplementary services provider, plummeted 32 percent after saying it has sought a restructuring opinion in response to a challenging financing situation.

Medical software firm CompuGroup Medical rose 1.5 percent after reporting its Q2 results.

Nordex Group shares fell 2.7 percent after an update that it has secured 3,357 MW of orders in its Projects segment, excluding service business, in the first half of 2024.