European stocks fall for third session amid mounting US-China tensions

European stocks opened lower on Thursday, to continue declining for the third straight day, to keep moving further away from a 4-year high on profit taking, amid diminished risk appetite due to mounting tensions between the US and China, which increased odds for delaying the signing of the first phase of the trade deal to next year.

Stoxx Europe 600 fell by 0.3% as of 11:15 GMT, as it closed lower by 0.4% yesterday, on profit taking after reaching in the previous session the highest level since July 2015, in addition to renewed trade war concerns.

The index opened today's session lower, to deepen its losses for the third straight day, as profit taking from a 4-year high continued, with most of the major European exchanges and sectors in the negative territory today.

The mining and basic resources sector saw the largest losses in Europe today, as it lost more than 1.4%, as the sector is the most sensitive to negative news about the trade talks.

The US Senate unanimously passed a bill to support pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong, which restrict President Donald Trump attempts to seal a deal with China.

China's Ministry of Commerce spokesperson, Geng Shuang, stated that China condemns the US legislation and stressed that the US will face "negative consequences" if it continued to interfere with China internal affairs.

Reuters also cited sources familiar with the talks that the two countries might not reach a trade agreement until 2020, as China seeks more tariff cuts on its goods.

S&P 500 futures fell by 0.3% today, while it closed lower by 0.4% yesterday, to mark its second straight daily loss, after it hit earlier yesterday its all-time high of 3,127.64 points.

Back to Europe, the Euro Stoxx 50 index fell by 0.3%, the German DAX fell by 0.25%, France's CAC 40 fell by 0.4%, and in London, the FTSE 100 lost 0.7%.