Europe stocks lower after three straight declines; U.S. jobs data in focus

LONDON — European stock markets were lower Thursday, continuing a negative run after closing last week at a record high.

The regional Stoxx 600 index was down 0.3% at 12:21 p.m. in London, with sectors spread between losses and gains. Utilities stocks rose 1.67% as the technology sector fell 0.89%.

Germany’s DAX managed a 0.18% gain after data showed factory orders in the country increased 2.9% month-on-month in July.

However, Benedict Acton-Bond, economist at Moody’s Analytics, noted that orders excluding big ticket items such as aircraft, ships and trains were lower, and said the release “further dents the narrative that industry is bottoming out.”

The Stoxx 600 has tumbled in the first three trading sessions of September after closing above 525 points for the first time on Friday.

Global sentiment has yet again been rattled by U.S. data, after weak manufacturing surveys and lower-than-expected jobs openings suggested a slowdown in the world’s biggest economy — and revived debate about whether the Federal Reserve could cut interest rates by 50 rather than 25 basis points this month.

That has put even more focus on the remaining U.S. jobs releases out this week, particularly initial jobless claims on Thursday and nonfarm payrolls and the unemployment rate on Friday.

A weak July jobs report was a major factor in the broad stock sell-off at the start of August.

“There is a slowdown taking place, there’s no question about it, but I think we’re very far from a recession,” George Lagarias, chief economist at Forvis Mazars, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Thursday.

Some moderation in the jobs market has long been widely expected, Lagarias said, indicating that “the Fed is not going to move very aggressively.”

To do so “might send a wrong message to markets and the economy. It might send a message of urgency and, you know, that could be a self-fulfilling prophecy,” he continued.

Markets have also been pulled down this week by the technology sector, which lost 3.2% in Europe on Wednesday.

U.S. chipmaking giant Nvidia suffered a massive wipeout on Tuesday which dragged on chip stocks worldwide. The company on Wednesday denied reports it received a subpoena from the Department of Justice over antitrust concerns.

On Wall Street, index futures were slightly higher in the early hours Thursday after a turbulent start to September.

Asia-Pacific markets also extended losses, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 suffering the steepest decline after wages recorded softer growth in August, potentially offering the Bank of Japan more room for a rate hike.