BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European markets ended lower on Thursday, snapping four successive days of gains, due to concerns about growth after data showed a drop in Germany's factory orders and on reports that Italy could lower its GDP forecast for the year.
Investors were mostly cautious as they tracked news on Brexit and U.S.-China trade negotiations, besides looking ahead to the crucial monthly U.S. jobs data, due on Friday.
The pan European Stoxx 600 ended down 0.27%. The U.K.'s FTSE ended down 0.22% and France's CAC 40 edged lower by 0.09%, while Germany's DAX ended 0.28% up. Switzerland's SMI edged down 0.07%.
Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal and Sweden closed weak.
Belgium, Russia, Spain and Ukraine edged up marginally, and Turkey closed sharply higher, while Finland, Ireland and Netherlands ended flat.
Shares of Commerzbank gained about 2.8% on reports UniCredit, the Italian lender, may bid for the bank in the event of the merger talks between Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank breaking down. Deutsche Bank shares ended lower by about 0.8%.
Wirecard, Lufthansa, Daimler, Adidas, BMW and Volkswagen were some of the notable gainers in the German market.
In France, Sodexo, Dassault Systemes and Capgemini lost 1.2 to 2%, while Valeo, STMicroElectronics, Unibail Rodamco, Saint Gobain, Credit Agricole and BNP Paribas closed higher.
Among British stocks, Micro Focus and Direct Line Insurance plunged nearly 6% and 5.5%, respectively. Lloyds Banking, Travis Perkins, Centrica and Smiths Group also declined sharply.
Schroders, Royal Mail, Ashtead Group, Tui, Provident Financial, Imperial Brands, Standard Life and Burberry Group gained 1 to 3%.
On trade talks front, U.S. President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet Chinese Vice Premier Liu He later in the day.
On Brexit, British lawmakers on Wednesday approved a bill to seek a Brexit delay to prevent Britain from crashing out of EU without a deal.
In economic news, Germany's manufacturing orders decreased sharply in February, defying expectations for a modest increase, preliminary figures from the Federal Statistical Office showed on Thursday.
Factory orders dropped 4.2% month-on-month. Economists had forecast a 0.3% increase in orders. January's decline was revised to 2.1% from 2.6%.
Domestic orders decreased 1.6% and foreign orders fell 6% in February. Demand from the euro area declined 2.9%, while bookings from other countries shrunk 7.9%, the data showed.
On a year-on-year basis, factory orders plunged 8.4% in February, after falling 3.6% a month earlier. Economists had forecast a 3.1% fall.
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