European shares at lowest levels in nearly two years

European shares fell to their lowest levels in nearly two years on Tuesday after a disappointing batch of third-quarter results, particularly in the tech sector, amid ongoing worries on Brexit, Italy's budget, Saudi isolation, trade wars, Chinese growth and US interest rates.
The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 1.3% at 0838 GMT, its lowest since December 2016, as it headed towards a fifth day of losses after a negative close in Asia and on Wall Street.
Other benchmarks sustained heavy losses: the Paris CAC 40 ?fell 1.3% and Germany's DAX lost 2%, also at December 2016 lows.
The Frankfurt bourse's blue chips are down 16.7% since their January high and not far from a 20% fall, which typically defines a bear market.
"Risk off the table as geopolitical tensions remain," was the message from LCG analyst Jasper Lawler to his clients ahead of the open.
The European tech sector posted the worst performance, down 3.7% as chipmaker AMS tumbled and lost 17% after its outlook failed to convince investors.
The sector, a key driver of stock markets, is down 18.4% since its June peak, also not far from bear market levels.
French IT services company Atos ATOS.PA cut its revenue growth forecast...

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