The pan-European Stoxx 600 was down around 0.6 percent during lunchtime deals, with almost all sectors and major bourses in negative territory.
Europe’s technology stocks were the worst performers shortly after midday, down more than 1.2 percent. It comes after official data from China on Monday showed imports fell 7.6 percent year-on-year in December, while analysts had anticipated a 5 percent rise.

Meanwhile, China’s exports unexpectedly dropped 4.4 percent, defying projections of a 3 percent gain. The news appeared to reinforce worries that U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods were starting to take a heavy toll on the world’s second-largest economy.
Looking at individual stocks, Denmark’s Pandora slumped toward the bottom of the European benchmark, after Morgan Stanley slashed its price target for the company. The Copenhagen-listed stock slipped 6 percent.
via CNBC
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