[MARKET ANALYSIS] European equities continue to slip as trade tension with the US heightens

Newsquawk Staff · 20 Jan 2026, 09:30 UTC

European equities are trading on the back foot, with sentiment remaining under pressure as trade tensions between the US and Europe continue to escalate. The latest development came overnight, when US President Trump threatened to impose a 200% tariff on French wine and champagne. However, Treasury Secretary Bessent spoke on EU-US relations, saying that he is confident that leaders will not escalate and things will work out. Given the recent escalations, Citi downgraded European stocks.
European sectors are largely trading in the red, with Media (+0.3%) the only sector in positive territory, though just posting modest gains. The biggest losers include Industrial Goods & Services (-1.5%), Utilities (-1.5%), and Construction & Materials (-1.4%). However, there has been little macroeconomic news to explain the specific sectoral moves seen for the bottom pile of sectors this morning.
Movers in Europe include Wise (+10.5%) with the Co. shares gaining after reporting strong Q3 earnings which saw underlying income rises by 21%. Also on the upside is Renault (+2.0%) after the Co. reported an increase in vehicle sales (+3.2%) Y/Y. On the downside, Fresenius Medical (+1.8%) has seen its shares slip following a broker downgrade at Goldman Sachs.
US equity futures are lower in the pre-market with downside in all major indices. Shares have continued to slide as uncertainty over EU-US relations remains high. Looking ahead, highlight includes US ADP employment weekly change and earnings from Netflix.

What our latest note said

US Market Open, 6 Nov, 10:48 UTC · what it led with

APAC stocks were pressured; KOSPI slumped 6% following hefty losses in Samsung and SK Hynix.
USD is firmer against all G10 peers awaiting the US NFP report.

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