The first day of 2016 couldn't have been much worse for European markets
2016 has gotten off to a horrible start in the European markets, with every single major bourse closing in the red on the year's first day of trading.
Terrible data from China sent all of Europe's major stock indices plunging early on Monday morning, and they haven't really recovered since then.
In Britain, the FTSE100 finished the day down 2.4%, nearly 150 points, taking it below 6,100. The pain felt by British miners in 2015 continued on Monday, with Anglo American, Antofagasta, and Rio Tinto amongst the biggest fallers. Only two FTSE stocks ended the day in the green.
Losses in continental Europe were even worse on the day. Germany's DAX, which is filled with exporters and therefore highly susceptible to changes in the Chinese markets, was down by 4.3% at the close.
Things were just slightly better in Italy, where the drop was just over 3%, while the CAC40, France's blue-chip exchange, was down by more than 2.3%.
Things are pretty bad in Europe, and they're not much better across the pond either. At the time of the European market close, the Nasdaq, the S&P500, and the Dow were all down by more than 2.2%.
Elsewhere in the markets, oil had a roller coaster of a day, rising by as much as 3.5% early in the day, before crashing, recovering again, and then crashing for a second time. Here's what the European benchmark, Brent crude, looked like:
