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April 26 (Reuters) - European shares dropped on
Wednesday, tracking overnight losses on Wall Street, as
recession fears resurfaced in the United States after downbeat
data offset initial euphoria from solid earnings by tech giants
Microsoft and Alphabet.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.4% by 0710
GMT, dragged lower by technology shares with a 1.3%
slump.
ASM International fell 10.0%, the biggest loser on
the index, after the Dutch semiconductor equipment maker
reported a drop in first-quarter orders, citing softening market
conditions, despite an estimate-beating revenue.
Oil and gas shares were up 0.7%, tracking oil
prices.
Earnings from Microsoft Corp and Google's parent
Alphabet Inc beat expectations, but recessionary
worries in the world's largest economy kept investor sentiment
fragile.
Shares of Standard Chartered Plc rose 0.6% after
the British bank's first-quarter pretax profit jumped 21%,
beating expectations.
Saab climbed 1.9% as the Swedish defence
equipment maker reported a rise in operating profit for its
first quarter and signalled solid demand.
Swiss banking software company Temenos jumped 8.8%
after it reported first-quarter earnings above consensus.
Investors will closely monitor commentary from a host of ECB
policymakers due to speak later in the day for more clues on the
central bank's monetary tightening path.
(Reporting by Shubham Batra in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry
Jacob-Phillips)
