(RTTNews) - German stocks declined on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced that he and First Lady Melania Trump have tested positive for Covid-19.
Concerns over rising Covid-19 cases in Europe and heightened uncertainty ahead of the U.S. election also weighed on markets.
Madrid is going back under city-wide lockdown measures to bring soaring coronavirus cases under control and ease the growing strain on hospitals.
Madrid premier Isabel Díaz Ayuso, however, rejected the move and argued that extended confinements will further heavily damage the economy, and aren't legal.
"Madrid is special because the health of Madrid is the health of Spain," Spanish Health Minister Salvador Illa told a news conference and called the situation "complex" and "worrying".
The benchmark DAX dropped 73 points, or 0.6 percent, to 12,658 after declining 0.2 percent the previous day.
Travel-related stocks were coming under selling pressure, with airline Lufthansa falling 2.7 percent.
TUI AG shares fell 1.3 percent. Responding to press reports, the travel and tourism company said that it continues evaluating various measures to achieve an optimal balance sheet structure and maturity profile, due to volatile market environment resulting from the Covid 19 crisis.
Automakers BMW and Daimler fell modestly, while Volkswagen was down over 1 percent. Knorr-Bremse AG shares edged up slightly. Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems, a unit of the manufacturer of braking systems for rail and commercial vehicles, has acquired full ownership of Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake LLC.
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