Apple bombshell sends investors to safe havens; ‘flash crash’ jolts currencies

Apple’s first sales warning in nearly 12 years sent European shares sliding Thursday, with the tech sector particularly badly bruised as chipmakers that supply the iPhone maker fell sharply.

Apple’s Frankfurt-listed shares fell 7.9 percent after the tech giant cut its sales forecast, blaming weaker iPhone sales in China, whose economy has been hit by a trade war with the U.S.

Dialog Semiconductor tumbled 6.7 percent, while Infineon, ASML, ASM International, Logitech, and STMicroelectronics fell 4 to 7.3 percent.

The tech sector was the worst-performing, down 2.9 percent and only the telecoms and bank sectors stayed in the black.

Peer Marks Spencer gained 2.1 percent, while Primark owner ABF rose 1.7 percent and Tesco rose 2.1 percent.

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