European stock markets are falling due to caution by central banks

(Reuters) – European stocks fell on Monday as investors prepared for interest rate decisions from the US Federal Reserve and European Central Bank later in the week, as creditor cases rose. The coronavirus in China after easing restrictions also weighed on sentiment.

The Stoxx 600 continental index was down 0.4 percent at 0805 GMT.

The index posted its first weekly decline after seven weeks of gains on Friday, as fears of a looming global recession from aggressive interest rate increases offset optimism about an easing of tight coronavirus restrictions in China.

Investor attention also focused on Monday on rising COVID-19 cases in China after easing restrictions. Industrial stocks and some luxury companies with exposure to China such as LVMH and Hermes International were among the hardest hit in the STOXX 600.

Elsewhere, the London Stock Exchange rose 4.5%, after Microsoft agreed to buy about 4% of the British stockbroker’s shares as part of a deal to migrate its data platform to the cloud.

Shares of Sanofi SA rose 1.9% after the French drugmaker said Sunday it was no longer in talks to buy Horizon Therapeutics.

(Reporting by Amruta Khandekar; Editing by Rashmi Aish; Editing in Spanish by Dario Fernandez)