12:06 PM EST, 03/04/2025 (MT Newswires) -- European stock markets fell sharply Tuesday after the US levied tariffs on imports from China, Canada, and Mexico. The Stoxx Europe 600 fell 2.20%, Germany's DAX sank 3.53%, the FTSE 100 in London lost 1.27%, France's CAC 40 shed 1.85%, and the Swiss Market Index was down 1.21%.

The euro area seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 6.2% in January, unchanged from December and down from 6.5% a year earlier, according to Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU. In the EU, the unemployment rate was 5.8%, which was also the same as the prior month, and down from 6.1% the prior year. The highest rates of unemployment were in Spain and Sweden at 10.4% and 8.9% respectively, while the lowest rates were in Czechia and Poland at 2.6% each.

And in corporate news, HSBC said Tuesday that it has named HSBC UK Chief Executive Ian Stuart to the newly created position of group customer and culture director. He will report to Group Chief Executive Georges Elhedery. The company said it has launched a process to appoint Stuart's successor, at which time he will begin his new role.

British oil and gas giant BP plans to appoint two new directors to guide its renewed focus on oil and gas, the Financial Times reported Tuesday, citing sources with knowledge of the matter. BP did not immediately respond to a request for comment from MT Newswires.

Automotive stocks fell sharply in Tuesday trading as Continental and Daimler Truck tumbled 12% and 7.8% respectively in Frankfurt, while BMW lost 5.9%, Mercedes Benz was down 4.8%, Volkswagen fell 4.1%, and Porsche declined 3.6%. In Paris, Stellantis dropped 10%, while Renault and Michelin closed 4.6% and 2.7% lower.

XBP Europe said Tuesday it signed an exclusive, non-binding letter of intent with Exela Technologies to acquire Exela Technologies BPA, a provider of business automation solutions.

Redwire said Tuesday that its Belgian subsidiary Redwire Space was awarded a contract by the European Space Agency to conceptualize a spacecraft that could travel to Mars. Financial terms were not disclosed.