Global stock markets fall as growth fears increases

Following significant dips in the US and Asia, fears of increasing costs and faltering economies have moved to the UK and European stock markets. On Thursday, the FTSE 100 index of prominent corporations fell 1.8 percent, while stock markets in France and Germany also fell. On Wednesday, US stocks fell the most in a single day since the beginning of the Covid epidemic in 2020. Gloomy projections from big US retailers rattled the markets.

Countries are also battling with strong increases in inflation, the UK's hit a 40-year high of 9% in April, and there are fears that certain economies could stagnate when interest rates are raised in a bid to combat price spikes. Susannah Streeter, senior investing and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said, "A red wall of anxiety has risen up throughout financial markets, with investors becoming increasingly concerned that economies are on the verge of entering recession".

Shares in UK companies that rely on consumer spending were impacted by the bad news from US retailers. Tesco, the UK's largest retailer, plummeted 1.8 percent, while Unilever, the world's largest consumer goods company, fell nearly 1%. Royal Mail, meanwhile, was the largest loser on the UK market, falling more than 12% after posting poor results and warned of "severe headwinds" from growing expenses.