LONDON — European markets were lower on Thursday morning as investors digested the latest Federal Reserve minutes.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 traded 1.46% lower in early deals, with all sectors in the red. Basic resources, oil and gas, and travel and leisure led the sectorial losses shortly after bourses opened in Europe.
The CAC 40 in France was dowFn 2.3%, followed by the FTSE 100 in the U.K. which was off by 1.7%.
Looking at individual stocks, Gn Store Nord fell almost 10% after reporting its second-quarter results. Mining firms Anglo American and Antofagasta were also among the top losers in early session.
The broad move lower came after shares in Asia-Pacific also fell, with Chinese tech stocks slipping again as regulatory fears continue to weigh on investor sentiment.
Fed minutes
Markets experienced a sell-off stateside on Wednesday following minutes from the last Fed meeting, which took place in July. The central bank discussed starting to remove some of the monetary stimulus likely before the end of the year as the U.S. economy gathers momentum. However, Fed officials reiterated that tapering would not necessarily mean an imminent rate increase.
In Asia, investor sentiment was also clouded by regulatory fears Thursday.
Back in Europe, investors are also following the latest geopolitical events after the U.S. decision to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan. On the data front, new jobless claims are due in the U.S.
Goldman’s latest acquisition
In the corporate world, Comcast and ViacomCBS announced a deal to launch a European streaming service, SkyShowtime, thus increasing competition with Netflix and others.
Separately, Goldman Sachs announced on Thursday that it will buy the asset management arm of Dutch insurer NN Group. The deal totals 1.7 billion euros ($1.98 billion) and represents the biggest acquisition since David Solomon took the reigns of the U.S. investment bank.
