Euro stock markets drop at open

Ahead of a eurozone crisis meeting between France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angel Merkel, Europe’s main equity markets fell in cautious opening trade this morning.

16 August 2011, 12:00am

London's FTSE 100 index of leading shares slid 0.68 percent to 5,314.16 points, Frankfurt's DAX 30 lost 1.02 percent to 6,022.24 points and the Paris CAC 40 dropped 0.73 percent to 3,215.50 points.

Elsewhere, Madrid declined 0.65 percent to 8,652.2 points and Milan shed 0.28 percent to 15,844 points.

Swiss stocks slid 0.63 percent to 5,291.39 points and Lisbon was off 0.28 percent at 6,334.93 points.

Figures released ahead of the meeting between France and Germany show how growth in the German economy slowed sharply between April and June and was weaker at the start of the year than previously thought.

The economy grew by just 0.1% in the quarter.

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