European Stocks Close Notably Lower As Growth Worries Resurface

(RTTNews) - European stocks closed lower on Wednesday, snapping a three-day winning streak, as worries about inflation and economic slowdown resurfaced.

Recession woes returned to the fore after a survey showed Euro zone business activity fell more than expected last month, increasing the likelihood of a recession in the 19-member common currency bloc.

S&P Global's final composite PMI for the region fell to a 20-month low of 48.1 in September from 48.9 in August, short of a preliminary estimate of 48.2.

Elsewhere in the U.K., the seasonally adjusted composite PMI slipped to 49.1 in September from 49.6 in August.

Euro zone bond yields rose, and the dollar rebounded as hawkish commentary from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand suggested that fighting inflation is still a priority for many central banks.

Markets posted strong gains in recent sessions as weak economic data from the U.S. raised speculation that the Federal Reserve might slow down the pace of interest rate hikes at its upcoming meetings.

The pan European Stoxx 600 drifted down 1.02%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 ended 0.48% down, Germany's DAX shed 1.21% and France's CAC 40 lost 0.9%, while Switzerland's SMI declined 1.07%.

Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain and Sweden ended with sharp to moderate losses.

Czech Republic and Iceland closed modestly lower, while Turkiye closed on a positive note.

In the UK market, Ocado Group tumbled 10%. Next, St. Jame's Place, Unite Group, Sainsbury (J), Smurfit Kappa Group, Melrose Industries, Tesco, Legal & General, Segro, British Land, Dechra Pharmaceuticals and Fresnillo lost 3 to 5.3%.

Shell, Auto Trader Group, Haleon and BP gained 1.25 to 1.75%.

In Paris, Faurecia and Unibail Rodamco plunged 7.7% and 7%, respectively. Valeo ended 6.5% down, and Michelin and Atos both shed about 5%.

Carrefour, Kering, BNP Paribas, Bouygues, Credit Agricole, Saint Gobain, Societe Generale, ArcelorMittal and Renault also declined sharply.

STMicroElectronics and Essilor both gained about 1.4%. Sodexo, Publicis Groupe and Safron also ended notably higher.

In the German market, HelloFresh ended more than 8% down. Continental, Zalando, Fresenius Medical Care, Vonovia, Deutsche Wohnen, Daimler, Fresenius, HeidelbergCement, Adidas, Deutsche Post and Sartorius lost 2.5 to 5.6%.

Infineon Technologies rallied more than 3%. Deutsche Boerse and RWE ended higher by about 1.3% and 1.1%, respectively.