Pedestrians, some wearing face masks as a precaution against the transmission of the novel coronavirus, walk along a street in the Liverpool One shopping area in Liverpool, north west England on October 13, 2020.
paul ellis/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
European stocks edged lower Monday, held back by nervousness ahead of the U.S. presidential election, as well as England announcing a lockdown.
Down over 5% in October, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 slipped 0.2%.
The German DAX
DAX,
French CAC 40
PX1,
and the U.K. FTSE 100
UKX,
all saw muted moves.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average
YM00,
rose 53 points.
On the eve of the election, former Vice President Joe Biden enjoys a 10-point national lead and 6-point advantage in battleground states, according to a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll. Other polls generally were positive for the Democratic challenger, with the exception of an Iowa poll showing President Donald Trump with a 7-point advantage after being tied in the Hawkeye state last month.
The coronavirus still rages, as U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a second lockdown for England that’s likely to start Thursday assuming it wins approval in Parliament. Deutsche Bank economist Sanjay Raya said the U.K. economy may contract up to 10% in November, and now sees fourth-quarter GDP falling between 2.5% and 3.5%, from a previous forecast of a gain of 2.1%.
The airline sector felt the pressure, with British Airways owner International Airlines Group
IAG,
losing 7%. Ryanair
RY4C,
edged 1% lower after the Irish discount airline said it lost €226 million in the September-ending quarter.
Associated British Foods
ABF,
fell 3% after it said that up to 57% of Primark’s selling space across Europe will be shut if the lockdown is approved.
Ocado Group
OCDO,
rose 5% after the food delivery company raised its profit guidance and also announced it was buying two robotic companies.
