European stocks tumble amid global investor jitters

London’s FTSE 100 dropped by more than 100 points during the day with gambling and tobacco stocks among those notching up the biggest losses.

European stocks tumbled on Monday amid worries over the global economy (Kirsty O’Connor/PA) (PA Archive)

European stocks tumbled on Monday as worries over the global economy and more bad news from China’s property market rocked the investor mood.

London’s FTSE 100 dropped by more than 100 points during the day with gambling and tobacco stocks among those notching up the biggest losses.

The blue-chip index closed 59.92 points lower, or 0.78%, to 7,623.99.

It came after the Bank of England and US Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged last week but indicated that further monetary policy tightening could be required if inflationary pressures remain.

Meanwhile, a new report from auditing giant KPMG cautioned that growth in the UK economy is set to slow throughout the remainder of the year and into 2024.

Michael Hewson, chief market analyst for CMC Markets UK, said: “European markets have got the week off to a poor start as concerns around sticky inflation, and low growth (stagflation), or recession have served to push yields higher and equity markets lower.

“Worries over the property sector in China aren’t helping either after it emerged Chinese property group Evergrande said it was struggling to organise a process to restructure its debt.

“This is prompting weakness in the basic resources sector, along with other companies exposed to the region, pulling the FTSE 100 to a one-week low.”

Germany’s top stock index, the Dax, dropped by 0.98%, and France’s Cac 40 fell by 0.85%.

Meanwhile, the pound hit a new six-month low against the US dollar, trading 0.2% lower to 1.225. Sterling was up 0.3% against the euro to 1.1531.

In company news, gambling giant Entain sunk to the bottom of the FTSE 100 after it told investors it is expecting online gaming revenues to have fallen over the year.

Online safer gambling measures and incoming UK regulations have contributed to a slowdown in spending, and it flagged a weaker-than-expected performance in its Australian and Italian markets.

Shares in the Coral and Ladbrokes owner were down by 13.1% at close.

Shares in tobacco giant Imperial Brands also tumbled on Monday amid reports that the Prime Minister is considering outlawing cigarettes for the next generation with tough anti-smoking measures emulating plans put forward in New Zealand.

Imperial Brand’s share price dropped by 5.7% at close, and shares in British American Tobacco were down by 3.3%.

In better news, shares in CRH leaped higher after the building materials firm said it had successfully transitioned to a primary listing on the US’s New York Stock Exchange amid efforts to grow the business and returns for shareholders.

It has retained a standard listing on the London Stock Exchange, where its share price was up by 5.1% at close.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were CRH, up 222p to 4,563p, IMI, up 30p to 1,500p, AstraZeneca, up 148p to 1,1194p, Pershing Square, up 32p to 3,032p, and Barratt Developments, up 4.5p to 472.1p.

The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Entain, down 138p to 918p, Imperial Brands, down 98.5p to 1,639.5p, Ocado, down 34.2p to 657p, Burberry, down 90.5p to 1,914.5p, and British American Tobacco, down 88p to 2,622p.