European stocks extend slump at open

[LONDON] European stock markets tumbled further on Monday, extending a pre-weekend slump that was sparked by a sharp escalation in Washington's trade war with Beijing.

In initial deals, London's blue-chip FTSE 100 benchmark index dived 1.1 per cent from Friday's level at the close, to 7,324.76 points.

In the eurozone, Frankfurt's DAX 30 index sank 1.0 per cent to 11,756.16 points and the CAC 40 in Paris shed 1.1 per cent to 5,301.59.

Asian equities had already plummeted as the Chinese yuan fell sharply, days after US President Donald Trump's vow to impose fresh tariffs on goods from China sent trade war fears spiking.

Mr Trump's announcement, which came on Thursday, means virtually all of the US$660 billion in annual merchandise trade between the world's two biggest economies will be subject to punitive tariffs, with the latest duties to take effect September 1.

The news saw all three major Wall Street indices slump to their lowest levels since June, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq recording their worst weekly losses of 2019 on Friday.

AFP