Autos, airlines smoked in sluggish start to European trading week

European shares dipped on Monday with the autos sector hitting its lowest level this year

European shares dipped on Monday with the autos sector hitting its lowest level this year

Published Jul 24, 2017

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LONDON - European shares dipped on Monday

with the autos sector hitting its lowest level this year after

anti-trust regulators opened an investigation into regional

carmakers while worries on escalating price wars hurt airlines.

The pan-European STOXX 600 fell 0.2 percent as

gains in the heavyweight financials sector helped offset losses

elsewhere. Euro zone bluechips also fell 0.2

percent.

Gemalto plummeted as much as 17 percent, the worst

performer on the day, after the digital security company warned

on profits for the fourth time since October on Friday after

trading, citing continued weakness in its SIM-card and U.S.

payments operations.

Budget airline Ryanair fell 4.7 percent, a top

European loser, after it warned summer fares would face sharp

cuts, though it reported profit soared 55 percent in its first

quarter.

Shares in carmakers across Europe fell after European Union

antitrust regulators said they were investigating allegations of

a cartel amongst them.

Volkswagen, Peugeot, Daimler

, Renault and BMW all fell 1.2 to

2.5 percent, sending the autos index down 1.6 percent,

the worst-performing sector.

Among leading gainers was B&M European Value Retail

, up 4.1 percent after a report that Asda, the British

supermarket arm of U.S. retail giant Wal-Mart, was

considering a 4.4 billion pound takeover bid.

Switzerland's third largest private bank Julius Baer

jumped 6.5 percent after reporting its biggest inflows

since the financial crisis for its first half, helped by a push

to recruit more private bankers.

REUTERS

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