Weak Economic Data Send World Stocks Tumbling
LONDON (Reuters) - Stocks worldwide tumbled on Friday after weak economic data from China and Europe fanned concerns of a global economic slowdown and left investors fretting over the wider impact of a still-unresolved Sino-U.S. trade dispute.
The MSCI All-Country World Index, which tracks stocks across 47 countries, was down over half a percent by afternoon in Europe. Futures indicated a weak open on Wall Street.
Euro zone business ended the year on a weak note, expanding at the slowest pace in over four years as new order growth all but dried up, hurt by trade tensions and violent protests in France, a survey showed.
Another survey showed French business activity plunged unexpectedly into contraction this month, retreating at the fastest pace in over four years in the face of violent anti-government protests.
Germany’s private sector expansion slowed to a four-year low, meanwhile, suggesting growth in Europe’s largest economy may be weak in the final quarter.
The data out of Europe added to weak readings from China, where November retail sales grew at the weakest pace since 2003 and industrial output rose the least in nearly three years, underlining risks to the economy as Beijing works to defuse a trade dispute with the United States.
Stock markets in Europe fell sharply, with Germany’s DAX index falling by as much as 1-1/2 percent. It was last down 0.8 percent. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was last down 0.8 percent, after falling over 1 percent earlier.
"The data this morning out of France really hasn’t helped the mood. You look at China data, you look at the flash PMIs out of France and Germany and they’ve really sort of reinforced concerns that the global economy is slowing down,” said Michael Hewson, chief markets analyst at CMC Markets in London.
The MSCI All-Country World Index, which tracks stocks across 47 countries, was down over half a percent by afternoon in Europe. Futures indicated a weak open on Wall Street.
Euro zone business ended the year on a weak note, expanding at the slowest pace in over four years as new order growth all but dried up, hurt by trade tensions and violent protests in France, a survey showed.
Another survey showed French business activity plunged unexpectedly into contraction this month, retreating at the fastest pace in over four years in the face of violent anti-government protests.
Germany’s private sector expansion slowed to a four-year low, meanwhile, suggesting growth in Europe’s largest economy may be weak in the final quarter.
The data out of Europe added to weak readings from China, where November retail sales grew at the weakest pace since 2003 and industrial output rose the least in nearly three years, underlining risks to the economy as Beijing works to defuse a trade dispute with the United States.
Stock markets in Europe fell sharply, with Germany’s DAX index falling by as much as 1-1/2 percent. It was last down 0.8 percent. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was last down 0.8 percent, after falling over 1 percent earlier.
"The data this morning out of France really hasn’t helped the mood. You look at China data, you look at the flash PMIs out of France and Germany and they’ve really sort of reinforced concerns that the global economy is slowing down,” said Michael Hewson, chief markets analyst at CMC Markets in London.