European Markets Close In The Red On Thursday

(RTTNews) - The major European markets finished lower on Thursday, pulling back from near four-year highs established in the previous session.

The selling pressure came amid concerns that a new U.S. law calling for support for pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong could undermine negotiations on a trade deal. The Thanksgiving holiday in the United States also kept investors on the sidelines.

Germany's Dax shed 41.49 points or 0.31 percent to 13,245.58, while London's FTSE fell 13.35 points or 0.18 percent to 7,416.43 and the CAC 40 in France sank 14.12 points or 0.24 percent to 5,912.72.

In Germany, Bayerische Motoren Werke tumbled 1.50 percent, while Bayer skidded 1.09 percent, Infineon dropped 1.02 percent, thyssenkrupp retreated 0.96 percent, Daimler declined 0.90 percent, Deutsche Bank sank 0.81 percent, Volkswagen shed 0.66 percent, Deutsche Lufthansa lost 0.52 percent, Deutache Telekom fell 0.26 percent and Heidelberg Cement added 0.15 percent.

In London, Vodafone plunged 3.91 percent, while St. James Place jumped 1.96 percent, Centrica tumbled 1.39 percent, Tesco climbed 1.24 percent, Prudential advanced 1.08 percent, Rolls-Royce Holdings added 0.39 percent, Scottish Mortgage Investment lost 0.37 percent, British American Tobacco fell 0.24 percent, Royal Dutch Shell rose 0.18 percent and Rightmove eased 0.06 percent.

In France, Bouygues tumbled 1.58 percent, while Credit Agricole plunged 1.34 percent, Peugeot skidded 0.85 percent, Carrefour sank 0.82 percent, Societe Generale shed 0.74 percent, BNP Paribas lost 0.62 percent, Engie fell 0.28 percent, Vivendi dipped 0.20 percent and Sanofi rose 0.09 percent.

In economic news, Germany's inflation rate was unchanged in November, at its lowest level since early 2018 after slowing for three months - while Eurozone money supply growth held steady in October as lending to non-financial businesses in the euro area increased.

Also, Italy's producer prices fell for the fourth straight month in October and Slovakia's producer price inflation eased to the lowest level in nearly three years in November.\