European Shares Edge Lower On US Debt Concerns

(RTTNews) - European stocks traded lower on Monday as investors reacted to Moody's downgrade of U.S. credit rating and mixed economic data from China.

The British pound rallied after the U.K. reached an agreement with the European Union to reset relations.

"There is an agreement ... on the different texts and parallel aspects of the EU-UK Summit," one EU diplomat reportedly said.

The pan European STOXX 600 dropped 0.6 percent to 545.82 after rising 0.4 percent on Friday.

The German DAX slipped 0.3 percent, while France's CAC 40 and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 both were down around 0.6 percent.

Budget carrier Ryanair jumped 4.4 percent after signaling robust demand for travel this summer.

Volkswagen plunged nearly 5 percent after shareholders renewed their criticism of the automaker's corporate governance at the carmaker's virtual annual general meeting on Friday.

Dutch tech investor Prosus fell more than 1 percent as it launched its cash offer to acquire delivery giant Just Eat Takeaway.

Diageo advanced 1.5 percent as the world's leading spirits company unveiled a $500 million savings plan.