London: European stocks closed lower Friday, hitting their lowest level in more than two weeks, affected by a decline in British banks and investors’ assessment of economic data in the US and the eurozone.

According to Qatar News Agency, NatWest shares fell 4.8 percent, while Barclays and Lloyds shares fell 2.2 percent and 3.4 percent, respectively, after a think tank recommended that the British government tax banks on the billions of pounds they receive in interest from the Bank of England on reserves they hold at the central bank.

This impacted on the banking index, which fell 0.9 percent. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed down about 0.6 percent, marking its first weekly loss in four weeks, weighed down by concerns about the independence of the US Federal Reserve and political uncertainty in France. However, this did not prevent it from achieving a second consecutive monthly gain.

Major stock markets in the region also closed lower, with the German DAX index falling 0.6 percent, as inflation accel
erated more than expected in August and unemployment exceeded three million people for the first time in 10 years. France’s CAC 40 index lost about 3.3 percent this week, lagging its regional peers amid fears of a possible collapse of Prime Minister François Bayrou’s government next month.

European technology stocks suffered the biggest losses, tracking their US counterparts, with ASML falling 2.7 percent and SAP software falling 1.9 percent.