FTSE 100 down 0.48%; DAX down 0.83%; CAC 40 down 1.46% (Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Milan, 24 Jul - European shares opened lower in cautious trade, retreating from yesterday's gains after losses in Asia and on Wall Street overnight. The Stoxx 600 index was down 0.63%.

Investors monitored earnings reports from European companies including major banks such as Deutsche Bank, UniCredit, BNP Paribas, Banco Santander, as well as from Easyjet, Orange and Iberdrola.

Political uncertainty continued to keep sentiment in check after US president Joe Biden over the weekend dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed vice president Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee.

The move was broadly expected after Biden's underwhelming debate performance against Donald Trump in June, and after polls recently showed the increasing likelihood of an election win by Trump in November.

Back in the region, data showed that German consumer sentiment is set to recover significantly heading into August as households' income expectations rose their highest level in over two years as inflation slightly decreased and wage increased.

Investors also monitored flash purchasing managers' index data from the the eurozone and the UK.

Key data from the US including GDP figures are due tomorrow, while the core personal consumption expenditures index, the Federal Reserve's favoured inflation measure, will be released on Friday. The index is seen rising 0.1% in June, pulling the annual increase down a tick to 2.5%.

In the region's stock market dealings most sectors were lower, with household goods and technology shares leading the losses.

At 0740 GMT, the London FTSE 100 was down 0.48% at 8,128 points, the Frankfurt DAX was down 0.83% at 18,396 points, the Paris CAC 40 down 1.46% at 7,487 points, while in Milan the FTSE MIB was down 1.00% at 34,290 points, and in Madrid the IBEX 35 was down 0.01% at 11,212 points.

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(RADIOCOR) 24-07-24 09:53:47 (0275) 5 NNNN