European shares closed flat to lower on Monday as investors weighed worse-than-expected manufacturing data against tensions in Ukraine. Most major country bourses closed down, but volumes were light because of U.S. markets being shut for Labor Day. The U.K.’s benchmark FTSE 100 and the German DAX both provisionally closed flat, while the French CAC ended unofficially lower by 0.1 percent.
The exception to the downward trend was the Swiss Market Index (SMI), which closed around 1 percent higher. The benchmark index was boosted by a rise in shares of Novartis, which released promising data regarding a new drug to treat heart disease. The pharmaceutical giant’s shares ended roughly 4.3 percent higher.
Earlier in the session, data for the euro zone showed growth in manufacturing output slipped in August, as economic and geopolitical uncertainties hit demand. Markit’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI) fell to 50.7, down from 51.8 in July.
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