LONDON, April 24 — European stocks slid in early deals today, with EU leaders divided over the size of a financial rescue package to stimulate the bloc’s economy left battered by the coronavirus pandemic.
Around an hour after opening, London was down 1.3 per cent, Frankfurt dropped 1.6 percent, Paris retreated 1.5 per cent, Milan lost 1.4 percent and Madrid tumbled 2.1 per cent.
“The inability of the EU to come together quickly and agree, even in times of emergency, isn’t just frustrating, it’s harmful to all members,” noted Craig Erlam, analyst at Oanda trading group.
“They seem to have agreed on the idea of a recovery fund while leaving the details for a future date,” he told AFP.
The United States on Friday approved nearly half a billion dollars in new stimulus but European leaders were divided on their own measures as the world sought to salvage economies hammered by the coronavirus pandemic.
Erlam added that “investors may also be reacting badly to remdesivir’s performance in its first randomised clinical trial”.
US stocks ended flat Thursday and Tokyo dropped Friday, following reports that the closely watched antiviral drug remdesivir has had no effect on patients in a coronavirus test.
“This was a ray of hope earlier this week and already we’re learning the pitfalls of getting too excited about these cures at the early stages of testing,” Erlam said. — AFP
