Several big factors caused European markets to fall sharply the beginning of October. The pan-European Stoaxx 600 was down 2.7 percent at the closing bell – putting it on course for the largest one-day fall for nearly a month. Several sectors fell more than 3 percent and all sectors and major bourses traded in the red. Construction and material stocks led the way in losses.
So, what caused this sudden dip in European markets? First, U.S. manufacturing activity tumbled to lows not seen in over a decade, which only caused concerns about a long-running trade dispute between Washington and Beijing to grow. Second, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled his final Brexit offer to the EU.
To make matters worse, the news of weaker-than-anticipated economic data out of the U.S. was compounded by German economic research institutes slashing GDP growth forecasts for Europe’s largest economy. It also caused stocks on Wall Street to suffer a sell-off, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 both nearing losses of 2 percent.
The situation is also complicated by the world’s two largest economies imposing tariffs on billions of dollars’ worth of one another’s goods since the beginning of last year. These tariffs have not only impacted financial markets, but also stirred up business and consumer sentiment.
The manufacturing slowdown and high downside risks from the trade war and Brexit uncertainty have also taken its toll on European economic projections. Just this month, leading German economic institutes revised (down) German GDP growth for 2019 from 0.8 percent to 0.5 percent. They also went as far as cutting 2020 projection from 1.8 percent to 1.1 percent.
Tips For Managing Brexit
The big question for business owners is, how to manage Brexit? With new developments surfacing every day and no clear roadmap to follow, merchants are really concerned about the future success of their operations. Here are a few practical tips that will help you navigate the uncertainty:
- Position yourself as an employer of choice – Focus on boosting your brand and managing your reputation. It’s also important to make employee engagement a top priority.
- Foster open communication – Whether you agreed to stay or leave, the unresolved situation can create a tense, insecure work environment. One way to ease everyone’s mind is to be transparent and communicative as possible about what the future holds.
- Create a seamless customer experience – Continue to work hard to create a seamless, positive customer experience. This includes making sure your customer’s demands and expectations are fulfilled, like multiple payment processing options and speedy checkout.
Do you need to improve your business’ payment processing options? Would you like to stay up to date on Brexit news? Checkout the latest industry updates and reviews – like Worldpay reviews – that Best Payment Providers has to offer.
Author Bio: Payment industry guru Taylor Cole is a passionate payments expert who understands the complex world of merchant accounts. He also writes non-fiction, on subjects ranging from personal finance to stocks to cryptopay. He enjoys eating pie in his backyard porch, as should all right thinking people.