China, rate woes send European stocks to one-month lows

By Bansari Mayur Kamdar and Sruthi Shankar

(Reuters) -European shares closed at their weakest level in over a month on Monday as worries about interest rates staying elevated for longer and a slowing Chinese economy dented the mood.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index slid 0.6%, down for a third consecutive session. Travel and leisure and personal and household goods indexes fell more than 2% each to lead sectoral declines.

China-exposed luxury stocks such as LVMH and Kering shed 2.6% and 4.5%, respectively, amid persistent concerns about growth in the world's second-largest economy.

Miners slid 0.8% as metal prices weakened on higher inventories and fears of a higher-for-longer global interest rate regime. [MET/L]

Investors assessed a slew of central bank decisions, where the Federal Reserve struck a hawkish tone, the European Central Bank signalled a pause in October and Britain, Switzerland and Japan were surprisingly dovish.

"September's reputation as one of the worst months for stocks will have been bolstered by the last four weeks of trading," said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading platform IG.

"A fresh climb in yields only adds to the stock market's woes, as investors come to realise that when Powell says 'higher for longer', he really means it."

Longer-dated euro zone bond yields rose, with Germany's 10-year yield hitting its highest since 2011. The ECB last week raised interest rates to a record high of 4%.

ECB President Christine Lagarde said on Monday the central bank's high deposit rate could help cut inflation to 2%, repeating the bank's guidance that neither promises nor rules out further rate hikes.

Germany's DAX shed 1.0%, with latest data showing German business morale deteriorated in September, falling for a fifth month in a row.

German shares are the worst regional performers so far this quarter, down 4.6% compared to the 2.5% fall in STOXX 600.

British gambling firm Entain shed 13.1% after warning on online gaming revenue. Peer Flutter Entertainment slid 3.2%.

SBB jumped 18.3% after the Swedish property group divested 1.16% of its education subsidiary EduCo to Brookfield Super-Core Infrastructure Partners for around 242 million Swedish crowns ($21.7 million).

AstraZeneca climbed 1.3% after Jefferies raised the drugmaker's rating to "buy" from "hold."

(Reporting by Bansari Mayur Kamdar and Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K and Sharon Singleton)