The FTSE 100 sunk to a two-year low today, falling as low as 6810.40 after shedding more than 100 points, according to data from Bloomberg. As of 09:21 GMT, the UK’s leading stock index was trading at 6,817.28, down 104.56 points or -1.51 percent – levels not seen since December 2016. In Germany, the DAX dropped to 10,986.70 after losing 213.54 points and being down 1.91 percent. While in France, the Paris CAC 40 was at 4,846.55, marking a decline of 97.82 or -1.98 percent.
Asian shares were also hit today by the Huawei news after being dragged down by sharp losses in technology shares.
Japan’s Nikkei shed 1.9 percent, closing at its lowest level since October 30, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 2.9 percent.
In Shanghai, shares dipped 1.7 percent by the end of the trading day.
It was announced today that Meng Wanzhou, global chief financial officer of Huawei, was arrested in Canada and is facing extradition to the United States.
The arrest, understood to have happened on December 1, is related to alleged violations of US sanctions, according to reports.
Huawei said it had “little information” on the charges but was “not aware of any wrongdoing” by Ms Meng.
Huawei said in a statement: “The company has been provided very little information regarding the charges and is not aware of any wrongdoing by Ms. Meng (Wanzhou).
“The company believes the Canadian and US legal systems will ultimately reach a just conclusion.
“Huawei complies with all applicable laws and regulations where it operates, including applicable export control and sanction laws and regulations of the UN, US and EU.”
Huawei is one of the world’s largest makers of handsets and telecommunications network equipment.