This photograph taken on January 20, 2026 shows a general view of the town of Davos at nightfall during the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos. The World Economic Forum takes place in Davos from Jan. 19 to Jan. 23, 2026.
Ina Fassbender | Afp | Getty Images
LONDON — European stocks opened broadly lower on Wednesday, as concerns about transatlantic trade weighs on sentiment in the region.
By 8:30 a.m. in London (3:30 a.m. ET), the pan-European Stoxx 600 was almost 0.2% lower, with most major regional bourses in negative territory.
On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump declined to detail what lengths he will go to in order to achieve his aim of making Greenland part of the U.S., telling a reporter, “You’ll find out.”
Trump has not ruled out military action to seize Greenland, and recently threatened new tariffs on a raft of European countries if they block his takeover bid. His ramped-up rhetoric on the U.S. needing to bring Greenland, a semi-autonomous Danish territory, under Washington’s control — and the subsequent tariff threats — sparked a sell-off of global assets on Tuesday and raised questions about the resurgence of the so-called sell America trade that first appeared following Trump’s “liberation day” announcements last year.
Trump is due to address the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, at 1.30 p.m. London time and, separately, CNBC’s Joe Kernen is due to interview the president on the sidelines of the event.
Speaking at the WEF on Tuesday, European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen labeled Trump’s new tariff proposals a “mistake” that would plunge both Europe and the U.S. into “a dangerous downward spiral.”
“Our response will be unflinching, united and proportional,” she said, while reiterating that the EU stood in “full solidarity” with Greenland and Denmark.
Bernd Lange, who chairs the European Parliament’s international trade committee, will hold a press conference in Strasbourg, France, later on Wednesday. The BBC, citing unnamed sources, reported that he will announce a suspension of the U.S.-Europe trade deal finalized over the summer.
French President Emmanuel Macron said a potential response to new U.S. tariffs was to use the EU’s Anti-Coercion Instrument, which would restrict U.S. businesses’ access to Europe’s single market. Triggering the ACI could exclude American suppliers from participation in EU public tenders, place export and import restrictions on goods and services and put limits on foreign direct investment.
CNBC will be interviewing a wide range of CEOs, officials, and business figures, including JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, as well as political leaders, including Polish President Karol Nawrocki. Check out all our Davos coverage here.
Elsewhere, data published Wednesday showed the U.K. inflation rate rose to 3.4% in December, above forecasts of 3.3% from economists polled by Reuters.
The U.K.’s benchmark 10-year gilt yield fell by around 3 basis points in morning trade, while the British pound was flat against the U.S. dollar and 0.2% higher versus the euro.