Stocks in Europe and Asia are retreating after Wall Street had its worst day since 2020.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index fell 1% in early trading today (May 6), with retail stocks
falling 1.5% to lead losses as almost all sectors and major indexes slid into negative territory. Oil
and gas stocks were the lone bright spot, rising a slight 0.7%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged more than 1,000 points and the Nasdaq Composite
index fell nearly 5% yesterday (May 5) on fears that rising interest rates to reign in inflation
could harm economic growth and lead to a recession.
Shares in Asia-Pacific also declined, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index leading regional
losses as technology stocks sold off following the tech-heavy Nasdaq’s sharp drop.
Monetary policy remains a key dictator of market sentiment. Global bond yields have surged in
recent weeks as investors react to interest rate hikes from the U.S. Federal Reserve and the
Bank of England.
Earnings continue to affect individual share price movements in Europe. Investors are also
monitoring Russia’s progress in eastern and southern Ukraine as its military appears to have
escalated assaults in those regions of the country.
