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London - Stocks in Europe slid for a fifth day as speculation intensified that Britain will vote to leave the European Union and traders awaited central bank meetings.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dropped 1.1% at 8:20 a.m. in London. The benchmark is poised for its worst five-day drop since February as Britain’s largest-selling newspaper backed a so-called Brexit on its front page and four polls from three companies put the UK’s "Leave" campaign ahead of "Remain," before the June 23 referendum.
The sterling resumed losses, while German 10-year bund yield dropped below zero for the first time ever.
A measure of euro-area stock volatility jumped 7.7%, putting it on course for the biggest five-day gain since August, as investors also prepared for policy reviews by the Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan tomorrow.
All 19 groups on the Stoxx 600 fell, with miners and car makers sliding the most.
After climbing 16% from a February low to an April 20 high, the Stoxx 600 has struggled to maintain momentum as worries over global growth and the trajectory of global monetary policy took over. It has traded in a range of less than 30 points since March.
Among shares active on corporate news, GAM Holdings tumbled 14% after the Swiss asset manager said first-half profit will probably halve as performance fees dry up.
Premier Farnell soared 49% after Switzerland’s Daetwyler Holding agreed to buy the electronic-component distributor for an enterprise value of €792m.
