Picture used for illustrative purpose. File

Europe's stock markets fell sharply in early deals on Monday, taking their cue from losses elsewhere, with investors growing concerned about an uptick in infections in Europe and the US.

London's benchmark FTSE 100 index of major blue-chip companies shed 2.1 per cent to 5,882.30 points, compared with Friday's closing level.

In the eurozone, the Paris CAC 40 lost 1.5 per cent to 4,903.30 points and Frankfurt's DAX 30 index dropped 1.8 per cent to 12,882.63. 

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"The fact that the WHO (World Health Organization) has warned about serious coronavirus infection rates developing in Europe, and central banks have decided to leave their monetary policy unchanged ... has given no further reason to investors why they should increase any of their equity bets," said AvaTrade analyst Naeem Aslam.

"In short, traders have decided to sit on the sidelines, and the lack of support for risker assets could make the selloff for the equity markets a little more intense this week."

Agence France-Presse