European shares fall as investors take stock of spreading virus
Halting their biggest ever three day rally, European stocks fell on Friday (March 27).
Investors appeared to be focusing once more on the spread of the virus despite hopes for stimulus measures.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down almost 2% in early deals.
The benchmark index has recovered almost 17% since hitting a low on March 16th.
But it remains more than 26% below its all-time high last month.
The rout has erased more than $3 trillion from the value of European firms.
After leading the rebound this week, travel and leisure stocks fell 3%.
Energy stocks tumbled and oil erased early gains.
Shares in BP fell close to seven percent.
Asian stocks ended the week on a more upbeat note though with investors pinning their hopes on policymakers rolling out further stimulus measures.
But concerns are mounting that the U.S. could become the new epicentre for the pandemic.
It's now the country with the most virus cases, surpassing even China, where the flu-like illness first emerged.
