European stocks succumb to Wall Street downturn

London, April 8: European stock markets gave up early gains on Monday to close mostly lower, dragged down by US markets worried about trade talks and the upcoming earnings season, analysts said.

The British pound was volatile as investors weighed the risks of another Brexit-themed week, with many willing to bet money on another, perhaps long extension to proceedings, while others think a hard crash out of the EU is not off the table.

In stock trading, Frankfurt came under pressure from the get-go after poor German data, and other eurozone equity markets soon followed suit, feeling the pressure from negative sentiment across the Atlantic.

"US stocks are lower in early action, with the markets seeming to look past Friday's upbeat labor report and focus on uncertainty regarding a US-China trade deal and this week's unofficial start to Q1 earnings season," analysts at the Charles Schwab brokerage said.

Dow member Boeing fell nearly four percent after slashing its production schedule for the embattled 737 line from 52 planes per month to 42 following the grounding of the 737 MAX after two crashes.

(AFP/APP)