European markets are set to fall at the open; France’s Macron to be re-elected as president

LONDON — European stocks are expected to open sharply lower on Monday as the sell-off in global markets continues into the new trading week.

The U.K.’s FTSE index is seen opening 94 points lower at 7,533, Germany’s DAX 241 points lower at 13,901 and France’s CAC 40 down 72 points at 6,509, according to data from IG.

Investors in Europe will also be digesting the projected result of the French presidential election on Monday, and monitoring the latest developments in Ukraine.

France’s Emmanuel Macron looks set to have comfortably beaten his rival Marine Le Pen in Sunday’s election, securing a second term as president on his pro-business and pro-EU agenda.

Official results showed centrist Macron of the La Republique En Marche party gaining around 58% in the second and final round of voting. Le Pen of the nationalist and far-right National Rally party had almost 42% of the vote.

European investors continue to monitor developments in Ukraine as Russia’s invasion of the country entered its third month on Sunday. The conflict that has killed thousands and led to the worst refugee crisis Europe has seen since World War II.

The war will end only if Russian troops fully withdraw from the country, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.

Asia-Pacific markets fell sharply on Monday following a sell-off on Wall Street on Friday. U.S. stock futures fell on Sunday night amid a four-week losing streak for the Dow Jones Industrial Average as investors assessed the likelihood of rising interest rates. Wall Street is also bracing itself for a stacked week of earnings, including reports from major tech companies such as Amazon and Apple.

Earnings are set to come from Deutsche Boerse, Philips and Roche on Monday. Data releases will include Ifo’s latest business climate survey from Germany.

– CNBC’s Silvia Amaro, Sarah Min and Matt Clinch contributed to this market report.