European Stocks Decline on Lockdown Risks From Omicron’s Spread
European Stocks Slump on Lockdown Risks From Omicron’s Spread
(Bloomberg) -- European stocks dropped the most in over three weeks as investors fretted over the risk of lockdowns and travel restrictions as the omicron coronavirus variant continued spreading.
The Stoxx Europe 600 fell 1.4% by the close in London, paring declines of as much as 2.6% after Moderna Inc. said a third dose of its Covid-19 vaccine increased antibody levels against omicron. Miners and energy underperformed with commodities, while automakers were the biggest decliners.
Lockdown risks are rising as Boris Johnson is in a debate over imposing fresh coronavirus restrictions as Christmas approaches amid opposition from his own cabinet. The Netherlands said Saturday it’s moving to a full lockdown until at least Jan. 14. Europe’s biggest countries are also weighing further curbs.
European shares have declined from record highs in recent weeks amid investor concerns about Covid-19 hurting the economic recovery and as central banks turn more hawkish in response to spiking inflation.
“We remain optimistic for 2022, but the winter months should be difficult due to rising inflation, persistent energy shortages and the need for further lockdowns across Europe and the U.K.,” said Joachim Klement, head of strategy, accounting and sustainability at Liberum Capital. “All of that is likely to curb growth expectations in coming months, but we remain buyers into weakness since we expect growth to remain strong overall in 2022 and inflation to drop.”
Germany designated the U.K. as a virus variant area from Monday, the highest risk category, requiring incoming travelers to undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine, regardless of their vaccination status. The nation’s economy, Europe’s largest, may contract this quarter as resurgent coronavirus infections trigger fresh curbs and keep shoppers at home, according to the Bundesbank.
“The rampant nature of omicron and its potential impact in sharply slowing global growth is continuing to unnerve investors,” said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. “The Netherlands has already imposed a fresh lockdown, and there is likely to be a domino effect of restrictions being imposed across Europe in the days and weeks to come.”
The Euro Stoxx 50 Volatility Index VSTOXX jumped to the highest in two weeks on Monday as market swings increased.
The omicron variant is likely to have a bigger effect on European stocks than on their U.S. counterparts due to the region’s services-led economies and extended lockdowns, said State Street Global Advisors’ Altaf Kassam.
“We do think that, in the medium to long term, it makes sense still to move risky assets from the U.S. to Europe, as Europe starts to get a bit more of an upswing,” said Kassam, the firm’s EMEA head of investment strategy and research, in a Bloomberg TV interview. “The services-driven European economy does need the uncertainty over the omicron variant to be lifted for it to really take off.”
Among individual stocks, Novo Nordisk A/S plunged the most since October 2016 after the company said late Friday that manufacturing snags at a contract supplier will make it unable to meet demand in the U.S. for its blockbuster obesity drug Wegovy. Meanwhile, Deutsche Telekom AG dropped on reports the company is preparing to sell either a minority or majority stake in its tower business.
MARKETS
- Equities: Euro Stoxx 50 down 1.3%, FTSE 100 down 1.0%, DAX down 1.9%, CAC 40 down 0.8%, FTSEMIB down 1.6%, IBEX 35 down 0.8%, AEX-Index down 1.1%, Swiss Market Index down 1.0%
- Bonds: German 10-year-yield up 1bps at -0.36%, Italian 10-year-yield up 3bps at 0.93%, Spanish 10-year-yield up 3bps at 0.36%
- Credit: iTraxx Main up 0.9bps at 51.6, iTraxx Crossover up 6.7bps at 260.3
- FX: Euro spot up 0.46% at 1.1292, Dollar index down 0.15% at 96.42
- Commodities: Brent crude down 5.7% at $69.4/bbl, copper up 0.1% at $9,450/MT, iron ore up 2.0% at $114.03/MT, gold down 0.2% at $1,794.27/oz
EUROPE EQUITIES
- 0 out of 20 Stoxx 600 sectors rise; technology sector has the biggest volume at 243% of its 30-day average; 114 Stoxx 600 members gain, 477 decline
- Top Stoxx 600 outperformers include: Argenx +8.3%, Rentokil Initial +6.5%, Bachem Holding +4.1%, AddLife +4.1%, Vitrolife +4.0%
- Top Stoxx 600 underperformers include: Novo Nordisk -11.7%, Bakkafrost P/F -11.0%, BillerudKorsnas -10.8%, AutoStore Holdings -8.7%, Ipsen -7.4%
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