European Stocks Finish Lower on COVID-19 Concerns

European stocks closed lower on Monday, amid concerns about the rising number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in a number of countries.

The Stoxx Europe 600 index declined by 0.59% to finish at 454.94 points.

Travel and leisure stocks took a strong hit and dropped by 4.3% over concerns about the pandemic.

The EURO STOXX 50 Index also decreased by 0.75% to the level of 4,089.91 points.

The French CAC40 index fell by 0.98%, while the German DAX ended 0.34% lower.

In the UK, FTSE100 ended the first session of the week lower by 0.88%, with the newly appointed health minister Sajid Javid expected to brief lawmakers on the plan to ease preventive measures.