Evonik and Richemont fall as European stock markets slip

Reuters
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LONDON, May 24 (Reuters) - European shares slipped lower on Tuesday, as the prospect of a possible U.S. interest rate increase in coming weeks knocked back global stock markets.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 and STOXX 600 indexes both fell 0.5 percent in early session trading.

Evonik was among the region's worst performers, dropping 6.4 percent after private equity firm CVC placed Evonik shares onto the market at a discount price.

Luxury goods groups Richemont and Swatch also fell 1.5 percent and 1.2 percent respectively, after data showed that Swiss watch exports fell 11.1 percent in April, compared to the previous year's figure.

However, shares in French household equipment manufacturer SEB surged 11 percent as investors welcomed SEB's move to buy WMF, a German maker of coffee machines and silverware, from KKR in a deal worth 1.6 billion euros ($1.8 billion)including debt. ($1 = 0.8924 euros) (Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta)

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