European Shares Dip as Tech Sector Weighs Down Index

European shares declined on Monday as technology stocks fell due to concerns about AI development pace. The STOXX ​600 dropped 0.3% to 637.5 points, with most major regional bourses trading lower.

Tech firms were among the worst performers, shedding 2%, in line with weakness among Asian and U.S. peers. This followed a call from Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei for AI companies to slow down their model capabilities due to fears of misuse.

Benjamin Picton, senior market strategist at Rabobank, noted that tech leaders were favoring tighter regulation for their own businesses with future growth throttled. France-based semiconductor firm Soitec led the decline on the STOXX, sliding 12.6%.

Euro area miners fell 2.1%, with base and precious metals declining as they tracked weakness in commodity prices. London-listed Antofagasta dropped 4% and Germany's Aurubis fell 3.2%. However, healthcare stocks bucked the trend to rise 2.2%.

Energy stocks were little changed despite a surge in crude prices following new Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia and Iranian attacks on ships in the Gulf. This has raised inflation worries and increased expectations of central bank rate hikes.