ROME: European stocks fell Thursday and moved toward a monthly loss, as investors weighed a rise in the euro and concerns about slowing global growth.
The Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, -0.30% fell 0.2% to 396.46, led by declines in technology, health care and mining shares. The pullback was the benchmark’s third in a row, with Wednesday’s 2.2% selloff underpinned by U.S. data that showed meager growth in the world’s largest economy in the first quarter.
“Confidence certainly seems to have been shaken up, with a few unknowns impacting investors,” said IG Market Strategist Stan Shamu in a note Thursday. There was “an unprecedented QE program by the U.S. and, judging by the way data is going, the economy isn’t quite able to stand on its own two feet yet.”
The Stoxx 600 was on track for a 0.2% decline in April, which would be the first monthly loss since December.
