European shares fall after UK growth review; mixed Asian markets in focus By Investing.com

Investing.com – European stocks retreated on Monday, the last day of September, as investors digested a series of local economic developments as well as mixed performances in major Asian indexes.

At 03:05 ET (07:05 GMT), Germany was down 0.3 percent, France was down 0.5 percent and Britain was down 0.12 percent.

Different Asian influences

The warm start to the week comes after the benchmark pan-European index closed at a fresh record on Friday, boosted by China’s announcement last week of a raft of stimulus measures aimed at boosting the world’s second-largest economy, also an export major. the market for large European companies.

China’s main stock indexes posted strong gains on Monday, including Hong Kong up more than 4 percent, after China’s central bank said late on Sunday it would tell banks to cut mortgage rates on existing home loans before Oct. 31 – the most recently from a series of aggressions. stimulus measures to support the country’s struggling real estate market.

However, Japan’s index fell nearly 5 percent as investors weighed the risk of higher interest rates under new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba – a long-time critic of the Bank of Japan’s ultra-easy policies.

Additionally, the Japanese fell 3.3% in August, while falling 5.1% on a year-to-date basis.

UK growth was revised lower

Back in Europe, data released earlier on Monday showed that gross domestic product rose 0.5 percent in the second quarter, slightly below the preliminary estimate of 0.6 percent for gross domestic product growth.

Compared to the second quarter of 2023, the economy grew by 0.7%, slower than economists’ forecasts of 0.9% growth.

data is due later in the session and is expected to show prices in the eurozone’s biggest economy rising below the European Central Bank’s medium-term target of 2%.

The ECB cut interest rates earlier this month and speculation the central bank will ease monetary policy again in October as slowing growth combines with cooling inflation.

Stellantis (NYSE: ) cuts annual guidance

In the corporate sector, Stellantis ( EPA: ) stock fell more than 6 percent after the Franco-Italian automaker cut its annual guidance, citing deteriorating global industry dynamics and Chinese competition in electric vehicles.

Sticking with the automotive sector, the British luxury car manufacturer Aston Martin (LON: ) warned of lower underlying annual profit and said it no longer expects to post positive free cash flow in the first half, citing supply chain disruptions and weakness in China.

Oil rises on Middle East tensions

Oil prices rose on Monday on the possibility of a wider conflict in the Middle East after Israel stepped up its attacks on the Iran-backed Hezbollah and Houthi militant groups.

By 03:05 ET, the contract was up 1.2% at $72.44 a barrel, while WTI futures traded 1.1% higher at $68.94 a barrel .

Israel said it bombed Houthi targets in Yemen on Sunday, just days after killing Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in an escalating conflict in Lebanon.

Both contracts fell last week as concerns about demand grew after fiscal stimulus from China, the world’s second-largest economy and oil importer, failed to reassure market confidence.