European Shares Slide On Covid Worries

(RTTNews) - European stocks were mostly lower on Friday as surging Covid-19 infections around the world stoked worries over the pace of global economic recovery.

The downside, however, remained capped after separate reports showed China's manufacturing activity continued to expand in December and service sector activity accelerated at a slightly faster pace in the month.

The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index edged up 0.1 percent to hover close to a record high after climbing over 22 percent this year.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 dropped 0.4 percent and France's CAC 40 index slipped 0.2 percent in the last trading session of 2021, while the German market was closed on the occasion of New Year's Eve.

Nestlé S.A. shares fell about 1 percent. The Swiss food major has terminated its existing share buyback program initiated on January 3, 2020.