European stocks extend slide as French protests dent risk appetite

European shares fell on Tuesday as violent protests in France, the region's second-biggest economy, continued to dampen risk appetite across the euro zone. The protests, which began ‌over the weekend, have intensified pressure on a country already grappling with soft economic growth and ballooning government debt, while presidential elections are due in six months.

Late on Monday, French authorities set curfews in parts of several cities including Paris, Lille and Nice. The pan-European ‌STOXX 600 index was down 0.51% at 636.32 points by 0837 GMT on Tuesday, after slipping 0.8% in the previous ‌session. France's benchmark CAC 40 index edged 0.41% lower.

France's government bond yields edged lower on Tuesday after their biggest daily rise in nearly a month as investors remained cautious ahead of a vote on the budget bill later in the day. "It's tough for investors to get particularly emboldened by Europe now," ⁠said Neil ​Wilson, investor strategist at Saxo ⁠UK.

"How much exposure do you want to Europe right now when you're not really sure what sort of policies are going to be pursued by ⁠government over the next few years, and France being the focal point for that." Most of the major European sectors were trading lower, ​with technology and industrials leading declines.

Investors also assessed a raft of corporate earnings reports. French cloud operator OVHcloud jumped 7.9% after reporting ⁠its first positive levered free cash flow since its 2021 listing, as its revenue expanded 7.2% to €1.15 billion ($1.29 billion) in the financial year through August.

Comet ⁠Holding ​jumped 4.1% after the electronic equipment maker reported a third-quarter sales increase, citing expansion of data centres and AI infrastructure. ABB fell 5.3% despite the Swiss engineering company reporting record quarterly orders.

Schneider Electric fell 2.1% after the French electrical equipment maker raised €6 ⁠billion ($6.74 billion) in an accelerated bookbuild, a fast share sale to institutional investors. Markets will also parse comments from European Central Bank policymaker ⁠Olli Rehn, scheduled to ⁠speak later on Tuesday, for clues on the bank's policy path.

Traders currently expect interest rates to remain on hold at the ECB's October meeting, while pricing in an 87% chance of a ‌hike in December, ‌according to LSEG-compiled data.