European Shares Fell Due to The Decline in Tourism Shares

European stocks fell as tourism stocks took a hit after Britain added more European countries to its list of quarantine areas for arrivals, while disappointing retail sales data from China raised doubts about the pace of the economy’s recovery.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.8%, but is on track to post gains for the second week in a row.

Travel and leisure shares fell 2.1%, while airline companies and other cruise operators such as TUI, EasyJet and IAG, which owns British Airways, fell between 3.5 5% and 5.5%.

French shares fell 1%, with Air France KLM falling 3.8%.

The United Kingdom decided to impose a 14-day quarantine on arrivals from France, starting from Saturday, and added the Netherlands, Malta and three other countries to the list.

Meanwhile, the performance of global markets was tepid, as Chinese retail sales data showed a sudden drop in July, while the factory sector’s recovery was facing difficulties in order to increase its pace, which weakened the prospects for a rapid recovery from the Coronavirus crisis.