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European Markets Close Mixed, Mirroring Global Sentiment at Start of Trading Week

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  • The euro zone current account surplus narrowed in February to 25.9 billion euros ($31.2 billion) from 34.7 billion in January as net exports declined, European Central Bank figures showed on Monday.
  • In terms of individual share price movement, Sopra Steria climbed 5.2% to lead the Stoxx 600 by mid-afternoon after Kepler Chevreux raised its price target for the French software company's stock.

LONDON — European stocks closed mixed on Monday, mirroring muted trading in global markets.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 ended the session slightly below the flatline, with autos shares falling 1.6% to lead losses while bank stocks rose 0.7%.

European markets received a cautiously positive handover from Asia-Pacific on Monday, with investors watching Alibaba's stock in Hong Kong following yet another development between affiliate Ant Group and billionaire founder Jack Ma.

Hong Kong-listed shares of Alibaba slipped 1.53% on Monday after Ant Group said in a tweet that a recent report by Reuters that the firm was looking at ways for Jack Ma to exit were "untrue and baseless."

On Wall Street, U.S. stocks slipped from record levels to start the week as weakness in the technology sector weighed on the broader market.

Earnings season kicked off last week when major U.S. banks reported quarterly results, and a host of companies are set to provide their updates this week. Ten Dow components will report, along with 72 S&P 500 companies. Coca-Cola beat first-quarter earnings expectations before the bell, while IBM and United Airlines are also among the firms set to report on Monday.

The euro zone current account surplus narrowed in February to 25.9 billion euros ($31.2 billion) from 34.7 billion in January as net exports declined, European Central Bank figures showed on Monday.

In terms of individual share price movement, Sopra Steria climbed 5.2% to lead the Stoxx 600 by mid-afternoon after Kepler Chevreux raised its price target for the French software company's stock.

At the bottom of the index, SoftBank-backed Swedish communications firm Sinch dropped 5.7%.

Italy's CNH Industrial fell 3.7% after ending discussions over the sale of its truckmaking business Iveco to Chinese company FAW.

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