European shares fall ahead of U.S. jobs data

LONDON (Stock Market News) – European shares fell on Friday, paced by oil producers and mineral extractors, as investors await more signs of a contracting economy with the release of key U.S. jobs data out later in the session.
Chart of ST:SXXP
The pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 index (ST:SXXP: news, chart, profile) fell 1.9% to 193.63, falling for the third time in five sessions.
“Today’s focus is on the monthly U.S. non-farm payroll jobs report. What we have seen happen over the course of this year is a strong business reaction to falling capacity utilization and weak demand — job cuts,” said Kenneth Broux, economist at Lloyds TSB Corporates & Markets.
Analysts are bracing for what could be the worst month for job losses in more than 30 years when the Labor Department reports on the November employment figures at 8:30 a.m. Eastern on Friday.
Economists surveyed by MarketWatch expect a decline of 350,000 jobs, which would be the largest loss since 431,000 jobs were lost in May 1980. A loss of 400,000 jobs wouldn’t come as a surprise, analysts said.
Shares in oil and natural gas producers and mineral extractors have dropped sharply since the middle of the year, in tandem with falling commodity prices, as investors fretted about the effect of waning demand in a contracting economy on profits.

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