© Archyde.com. A screen displays data from the German DAX index at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange on Monday. Archyde.com photo.
(Archyde.com) – European shares fell on Monday, led by technology shares, while bond yields jumped, while comments from European Central Bank officials highlighted concerns about strong measures to curb inflation amid growing recession fears.
The European index ended the trading session down 0.8 percent to its lowest level in more than a month, with interest rate-sensitive technology shares recording a 2.4 percent loss.
The German 10-year government bond yield rose 10 basis points to a two-month high.
At the weekend, ECB Executive Board member Isabelle Schnabel urged central banks to move aggressively to fight inflation even if it caused economies to slide into recession, while Executive Board member Francois Villeroy and Monetary Policy Committee member Martins Kazaks pointed to another big rate hike in September. .
Their comments followed a warning from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Friday that the US central bank would raise interest rates to levels needed to restrain growth and keep them at those levels “for some time”.
The volatility gauge for regional stocks jumped to a six-week high of 29.4.
The benchmark Stoxx 600 is down about 4 percent so far in August, after last month erasing nearly all of its losses in a sell-off in June.
Real estate stocks, among sectors considered “defensive” or safer bets during times of economic uncertainty, were among the lowest losers on Monday’s session amid a sell-off in stocks listed on the Stoxx 600.
Markets in Britain were closed on Monday for a holiday.
(Prepared by Wagdy Al-Alfi for the Arabic Bulletin)