Europe open: Shares open in glum mood after weak China data
European shares were in glum mood at the open on Tuesday as poor data from China hit sentiment, and stoked fears of an economic slowdown.
The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.13% at 0835 GMT, after hitting a nine-month high in the previous session.
Official data showed China's growth in 2022 slumped to one of its worst levels in nearly half a century as the fourth quarter was hammered by strict Covid-19 curbs and a property market slump. The news saw regionally-exposed financials HSBC and Prudential fall.
In Germany’s the inflation rate hit a four-month low of 8.6% in December driven by smaller increases in food and energy prices, partially offset by higher services and rent prices.
“This echoes last week’s inflation figures from France and Spain which together support the view that price levels across the euro zone may have peaked,” said Interactive Investor analyst Victoria Scholar.
Meanwhile in the UK, unemployment in the three months to November hit 3.7%, 0.2 percentage points higher than the prior quarter and 0.3 percentage points below pre-covid levels.
The country, which is being hit by a wave of strikes after more than a decade of poor wage growth, also saw pay increase at the fastest pace in more than two decades, but still fall by 2.6% because of soaring inflation.
In equity news, British online grocer Ocado slumped more than 10% after sales fell short of expectations, while ecommerce group THG dropped on warning its full-year revenue and profit will miss target.
Shares of Hays gained after the UK-listed recruitment agency reported a rise in its second-quarter net fees.
Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com