European markets are crashing as Trump takes the presidency
Stocks across Europe are crashing on Wednesday after it was confirmed that Donald Trump is the next president of the United States.
All of Europe's biggest bourses are significantly down soon after the European open, crashing lower thanks to the uncertainty that a Trump presidency brings to the markets.
Trump and his economic positions are seen as far less predictable than those of Hillary Clinton, and do not always follow party orthodoxy. As such he is perceived as more of a political risk than Clinton, causing the huge reactions in the markets overnight, which have continued into European trade.
All of the continent's major indexes are off more than 2% just after 8.00 a.m. GMT (3.00 a.m. ET), with shares in both Spain and Italy more than 3.5% down.
So far, Britain's FTSE 100 is proving the most resilient index, down just 1.5% to 6,738 points. Here's the chart:
Germany's DAX, probably the most watched index in Europe after the FTSE, is off almost 3% soon after the open, dragged lower by banking and automotive stocks. Here's how it looks:
The Euro Stoxx 50 broad index, which tracks Europe's biggest companies, is off 2.6%:
"A Trump Presidency will probably have mixed implications for businesses in the US. Trump advocates lower corporate taxes, but he has also suggested that he would try to curtail the ability of companies to freely move capital out of the country," HSBC's chief US economist Kevin Logan said in a note circulated on Wednesday morning.