The pan-European STOXX 600 fell 6.1% to 0807 GMT, entering the bear market – commonly defined as a 20% drop from all-time highs.
The FTSE 100, heavy for raw materials, fell 8.0% in London, the shares of the oil majors BP and Royal Dutch Shell having fallen by more than 20%. The main declinator of STOXX 600 was tullow oil, with a fall of 57%.
Europe’s oil and gas index fell 7.3% as crude prices plummet after Saudi Arabia launched a price war by cutting its official selling price and setting plans for a dramatic increase in crude oil production next month.
Italy has become the front line of the crisis in Europe after the government has ordered a virtual foreclosure over much of its wealthy north, including the financial capital Milan, in another drastic attempt to try to contain the epidemic.
