European stock markets fall at open
London, (MILLAT ONLINE):Europe’s main stock markets fell at the open on Wednesday, dented by fresh losses overnight on Wall Street and earlier in Asia.
Investor sentiment was also weighed down by faltering Chinese factory activity, which slowed to a 19-month low in February.
In initial deals, London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index of top blue-chip companies dropped 0.5 percent to 7,247.52 points, compared with the closing level on Tuesday.
In the eurozone, Frankfurt’s DAX 30 also lost 0.5 percent to 12,427.46 points and the Paris CAC 40 shed 0.4 percent to 5,321.50.
Asian equities sank Wednesday as an upbeat assessment of the US economy by new Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell fanned fresh fears of a sharp rise in interest rates.
In his closely watched debut before lawmakers, Powell said the outlook had improved since December when Donald Trump pushed through massive across-the-board tax cuts.
The remarks sent all three main Wall Street indices plunging more than one percent and the dollar surging against most other currencies.