Europe’s stocks fall from record highs, inflation data in focus

European stock indexes fell from recent record highs on Monday, and Wall Street looked set for losses, as traders grappled with an uncertain economic outlook and waited for U.S. inflation data later in the week.
U.S. stocks started to fall from record highs on Friday, in a move analysts attributed to profit-taking, after U.S. payrolls data presented a mixed picture but maintained expectations for a Federal Reserve rate cut in June.
Traders are now focused on U.S. inflation data due on Tuesday, which could change expectations for when major central banks will begin cutting rates.
At 1236 GMT, the MSCI World Equity index was down 0.3 per cent, having hit a new all-time high on Friday.
The pan-European STOXX 600, which also hit an all-time high on Friday, was down 0.5 per cent.

London’s FTSE 100 was down 0.5 per cent and Germany’s DAX was down 0.7 per cent.
Amelie Derambure, senior multi-asset portfolio manager at Amundi, said Monday’s downturn could be due to uncertainty about the economic outlook, and high valuations in stocks.
“There are some elements on the macro outlook that are maybe not as clear as one was willing to believe,” she said.
Last week, comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell and European Central Bank policymakers raised expectations that interest rate cuts will begin in summer, helping push stock indexes to new highs.