FTSE down 1.82%; DAX down 1.57%; CAC 40 down 1.50% (Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - London, 16 Apr - European shares ended sharply lower amid fears of escalating tension in the Middle East with the Stoxx 600 index down almost 1.6%.

Concerns Israel is set to mount a military response to Iran's drone attack over the weekend dampened sentiment.

Moves by Washington to encourage restraint by Israel had helped settle nerves, but Tel Aviv signalled a response will be needed.

Also weighing on investor sentiment, concerns over interest rate cuts after recent sticky inflation numbers in the US expected to prompt higher-for-longer interest rates in the world's biggest economy.

In comments today the European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said the bank remains on course to cut interest rates in the near term providing there were no major shocks in the meantime.

On the data front, In April, the index for economic sentiment in Germany rose to 42.9 points from 31.7 in March, according to the latest survey released by think tank ZEW. The current conditions component of the index was instead broadly steady, increasing by 1.3 points to -79.2 points.

Also in Germany, wholesale prices rose 0.2% on the previous month and fell by 3.0% in March compared with the same month last year, according to data released by the federal statistics office.

The UK unemployment rate for December 2023 to February 2024 stood at 4.2% and is above estimates a year ago, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS). The UK employment rate for the three-month period was 74.5% and remains below estimates a year ago, figures released by the national statistics office showed.

UK core wage growth slowed again, posting its weakest increase since the three months to September 2022, the data also showed.

The eurozone posted a 23.6 billion euro surplus in trade in goods in February, compared with a 3.6 billion surplus a year earlier, according to the statistics office Eurostat.

The euro area exports February were 235.0 billion euros, up 0.3% compared with February 2023. Imports stood at 211.4 billion euros, a fall of 8.4% year on year.

The London FTSE 100 closed down 1.82% at 7,820.36 points, the Frankfurt DAX was 1.57% lower at 17,744.46 points, and the Paris CAC 40 fell 1.50% to 7,924.71 points, while in Milan the FTSE MIB fell 1.65% to 33,393.85 points and in Madrid the IBEX 35 closed 1.57% lower at 10,519.20 points.

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(RADIOCOR) 16-04-24 17:57:04 (0645) 5 NNNN