European Markets Close Lower

(RTTNews) - European markets closed lower on Wednesday as investors made cautious moves amid concerns about the possible impact of any new wave of Covid-19 infection following lifting of lockdown restrictions in several places across the world.

Disappointing euro area economic data hurt as well. Investors also noted warnings from several Federal Reserve officials that more damage to the economy is likely from the coronavirus.

The pan European Stoxx 600 ended down 0.35%. Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 lost 1.15% and 1.11%, respectively, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 edged up 0.07%. Switzerland's SMI surged up 0.63%.

Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden and Turkey ended weak, while Denmark and Iceland closed higher.

In Germany, BMW and Wirecard lost more than 5%. Lufthansa declined 3.8%, while BASF, SAP, Daimler and Deutsche Bank lost 2.3 to 3.2%.

Infineon Technologies surged up 5.2%. Beiersdorf and Fresenius ended higher by 2.3% and 2%, respectively.

In the French market, Unibail Rodamco, Airbus Group and Accor lost 4.5 to 5%. ArcelorMittal, Kering, Societe Generale, Publicis Groupe, Sodexo, Bouygues, Carrefour, Veolia International and Credit Agricole ended lower by 2 to 4%.

On the other hand, Thales and Capgemini moved up 2.7% and 2.5%, respectively. Sanofi and Atos also ended notably higher.

In the U.K. market, Pearson, TUI, Carnival, Meggitt, Royal Bank, Royal Dutch Shell, EasyJet, Centrica, Associated British Foods, Barclays and Fresnillo lost 2 to 6%.

Among the gainers, Hiscox spurted nearly 9%, Hikma Pharmaceutical moved up 5.5% and Ocado Group rallied nearly 5%. RSA, AstraZeneca, Aveva Group, ITV and DS Smith gained 3 to 4%.

Shares of Norwegian Air plunged sharply after the airline said it would sell new shares at a 79% discount to the latest traded price on the Oslo Bourse.

In economic news, the euro area private sector experienced a record downturn in April due to the severe disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic, final survey results from IHS Markit showed.

The composite output index slid to a new series low of 13.6 from March's 29.7 as both manufacturing and services reported record fall in output in April. The flash score was 13.5.

Eurozone retail sales declined more than expected in March, falling 11.2%, as coronavirus containment measures hurt consumption of non-essential goods, data from Eurostat showed. In February, sales rose 0.6%.

German factory orders declined by 15.6% on a monthly basis in March, much bigger than the 1.2 percent drop logged in February, data published by Destatis showed. This was the biggest fall since January 1991.

On a yearly basis, factory orders were down 16%, in contrast to a 1.9% rise in February.

The European Commission's forecast says the French economy could contract 8.2% this year.

Activity in the U.K. construction sector slumped to a record low in April, figures from IHS Markit showed. The Markit/CIPS construction purchasing managers' index slid to 8.2 in April from 39.3 in March as Covid-19 forced a reduction in activity.

According to reports, the Bank of England and Britain's Treasury were in discussion about an emergency funding scheme to help cash-starved small businesses.