Political unrest in Italy drags down European equities

European equities opened lower on Friday, prolonging their losses for the second week in a row, as worries over the Italian government's stability provoked troubles among investors.

The MIP of Milan fell by 1.6%, the Italian banks having suffered the biggest shock after Matteo Salvini, the head of the ruling League, on Thursday withdrew his support for the governing coalition in power.

Markets have recently been heavily influenced by the political events in Rome, with Italian bond yields increasing whenever there is concern about the sustainability of governments.

The benchmark European STOXX 600 index lost 0.2% after posting its best daily performance in almost two months on Thursday, as a result of China's positive trade data and the stability of its currency.

A Bloomberg report revealed that Washington was delaying the decision to license US companies to allow them to resume trading with Huawei Technologies, which worries investors in the face of escalating quarrels in the United States. the current commercial dispute.

The health sector has limited losses of the index, supported by Novo Nordisk, whose quarterly operating profit was higher than expected after the company raised its sales forecast for 2019.