Name: European stocks fall on grim economic forecasts and EU failure to agree a pandemic recovery plan
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European stocks fall on grim economic forecasts and EU failure to agree a pandemic recovery plan

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European stocks slipped Wednesday, as a meeting of EU finance ministers ended with no agreement on a response to the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus epidemic, and amid grim forecasts for France and Germany. The Stoxx Europe 600 index&nbsp;fell 0.4% to 325.70. The losses threaten to break a two-session streak of gains, with Tuesday’s session ending in a 1.88% rise. Elsewhere, the FTSE 100 index&nbsp; fell 0.8% as investors continued to watch for updates on the health of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has been in intensive care since Monday after his coronavirus symptoms worsened.Read: European stocks slipped on the heels of a weak U.S. session . But Dow industrial futures&nbsp;were last up 300 points Wednesday morning, or 1.4%, to 22,794 in what has been a choppy trading so far. The French CAC 40slipped 0.7% after the in first quarter gross domestic production — the biggest fall since the World War II. A joint forecast from said the pandemic will cause the country’s economy to shrink by 4.2%. It sees the German economy slumping 9.8% in the second quarter, the worst figure ever recorded since quarterly accounts were tracked in 1970, with a rebound of 5.8% next year. The German DAX index&nbsp;fell 0.3%. Meanwhile, a Eurogroup of finance ministers meeting on a united approach to shouldering the burden of the virus’s fallout. Among the areas of contention, countries like Italy and Spain would like to see issuance of eurozone debt, but the Netherlands and Germany have resisted. There were also rifts over the conditions attached to credit lines from the European Stability Mechanism - the EU agency that provides financial assistance to eurozone countries. Globally, cases of the coronavirus continued to slow, though Tuesday marked the most global fatalities in a single day, which strategists at Deutsche Bank say has been taking place due to catching up from incomplete reporting over the weekend. While the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the outlook, has begun lifting travel restrictions and Italy is also starting to look at easing a strict lockdown as new deaths and cases start flattening out, New York reported the highest deaths in a single day thus far. Jasper Lawler, head of research at London Capital Group, said pandemic curves may not flatten in time for April deadlines set to review any lockdown measures, which means many countries will be enduring another three weeks of restrictions. “An extension of lockdowns and associated deeper economic hardship is probably priced in but raises the chance of a retest of the March lows in stock markets,” said Lawler, in a note to clients. As for stocks on the move, shares of TUI AG&nbsp;rose more than 5%. The U.K.-listed travel group said it with the German government to help it weather the coronavirus downturn. Major oil companies acted as a weight on the index, with shares of BP PLC&nbsp;&nbsp;and Royal Dutch Shell Group PLC&nbsp;&nbsp;down nearly 3% and 2%, respectively. Crude oil&nbsp;was rebounding as investors looked ahead to a meeting of OPEC + leaders on Thursday that could end in a production cut. That’s after crude prices fell sharply on Tuesday. London-listed insurers were also weak. Shares of Aviva PLC&nbsp;slid over 8% and Direct Line Insurance Group PLC&nbsp;fell 7% after the companies said their due to the coronavirus after instructions from regulators. RSA Insurance Group PLC&nbsp;said it would do the same, but shares fell just 3%. Away from the main index, shares of Novacyt SAS&nbsp;climbed 19% after the French-based specialist in clinical diagnostics announced a plan to increase COVID-19 testing with via its Primerdesign unit in Southhampton.R.F. Lafferty analyst Jaime Perez launched coverage of electric vehicle maker Lucid with a Buy rating and $19 price target.SearchVisit a quote page and your recently viewed tickers will be displayed here.Search TickersNo results found

European stocks slipped Wednesday, as a meeting of EU finance ministers ended with no agreement on a response to the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus epidemic, and amid grim forecasts for France and Germany. The Stoxx Europe 600 index&nbsp;fell 0.4% to 325.70. The losses threaten to break a two-session streak of gains, with Tuesday’s session ending in a 1.88% rise. Elsewhere, the FTSE 100 index&nbsp; fell 0.8% as investors continued to watch for updates on the health of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has been in intensive care since Monday after his coronavirus symptoms...

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Senior reporter/editor for MarketWatch on the red-eye premarket. Mom, Jayhawk. Once upon a time a blue check. #IStandWithEvan bkollmeyer@marketwatch.com

Barbara Kollmeyer

MarketWatch is a website that provides financial information, business news, analysis, and stock market data. Along with The Wall Street Journal and Barron's, it is a subsidiary of Dow Jones & Company, a property of News Corp. Notable contributors include Mark Hulbert and Francine McKenna.

European stocks fall on grim economic forecasts and EU failure to agree a pandemic recovery plan

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