Europe: Tobacco companies weigh on shares

[BENGALURU] European shares pulled back on Tuesday after hitting record highs a day earlier, as tobacco companies weighed on UK stocks and many regional indexes edged off pre-pandemic highs.

Shares of British American Tobacco, Imperial Brands and Swedish Match fell between 1.7 per cent and 5.6 per cent in early trading following a report the Biden administration was considering requiring tobacco companies to lower the nicotine levels in all cigarettes sold in the United States.

UK's blue-chip FTSE 100 fell 0.4 per cent, Germany's DAX was flat and France's CAC 40 slipped 0.3 per cent.

The pan-regional Stoxx 600 index dropped 0.2 per cent by 7.07am GMT. The benchmark has hit a series of all-time highs this month after having climbed more than 10 per cent so far in 2021.

French food group Danone slipped 0.9 per cent even as it kept its goal of returning to profitable growth in the second half of 2021.

Swedish medical gear maker Getinge jumped 7.7 per cent after it posted a rise in first-quarter core profit.

REUTERS