LONDON — A raft of downbeat news from China and the U.K. sent European stock markets down in midmorning trading on Tuesday, with the CAC 40 in Paris leading the way.
The French market fell 1.6 percent to 4,612.30, while the DAX in Frankfurt and FTSE MIB in Milan were both down 1.2 percent to 9,996.94 and 21,824.62, respectively. The FTSE 100 in London fell 0.8 percent to 6,318.53.
The euro traded at $1.14, while the pound fetched $1.53, and the Swiss franc equaled $1.04 at 11:45 am CET.
Retail and luxury stocks were mostly down, with the morning’s biggest fallers including LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, which lost 3.3 percent to 161.05 euros after publishing third-quarter revenue figures that showed a marked slowdown in growth in its key fashion and leather-goods division during the period.
News that Chinese imports fell 20 percent in September weighed on the sector in general. Other stocks that lost ground included Swatch Group, 2.1 percent to 77.00 Swiss francs; Moncler, 2.6 percent to 15.31 euros; Burberry Group, 2 percent to 14.46 pounds; Aeffe, 3.3 percent to 1.51 euros, and Kering, 3.2 percent to 157.55 euros.
Among the few stocks that gained ground were Italia Independent Group, 2.3 percent to 31.00 euros; and MySale Group, 1.4 percent to 0.55 pounds.
Also on Tuesday, Britain’s Office for National Statistics said inflation fell to minus 0.1 percent in September, due to a smaller-than-expected rise in clothing prices, and declining fuel prices.