European shares inched lower on Tuesday, slightly extending losses in the previous session, while Bayer surged after the US administration supported the German pharmaceutical firm’s court appeal.
The pan-European STOXX 600 fell 0.1% to 574.48, as of 0809 GMT, set to extend Monday’s industrials-led declines.
However, major regional bourses such as Germany and France were up about 0.1% each.
Healthcare stocks led declines on the index, down 0.3%, weighed down by losses in heavyweights AstraZeneca and Novo Nordisk.
However, Bayer jumping about 15% after US President Donald Trump’s administration urged the US Supreme Court on Monday to take up the company’s bid to block thousands of lawsuits claiming its Roundup weed-killer caused cancer, limited losses in the sector.
Consumer discretionary stocks such as luxury firms and automobile companies were also trading lower.
Meanwhile, Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and son-in-law Jared Kushner are scheduled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin for talks on a possible Ukraine ceasefire.
Among individual stocks, FDJ United slipped 4.2% after J.P.Morgan downgraded the lottery and online game operator’s stock to “underweight”.
Investors will now focus on the euro zone’s flash inflation data for November due later in the day.
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