European shares continue to fall

On Wednesday European shares fell for an eighth day, intensifying a global selloff, as a gauge of market turmoil posted its longest jump since 2011.

Almost all industry groups in the Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell, taking the gauge down 0.7 percent at 8:25 a.m. in London. Financial firms slid the most, while automakers slipped with a rise in the euro. The VStoxx Index, which measures volatility expectations for the region, added 2.8 percent, taking its advance into an eighth day, the longest streak in more than five years.

European government bonds advanced as investors sought their relative safety after the latest polls suggested that the outcome of next week’s U.S. presidential election is not clear cut.

Tightening polls ahead of the U.S. presidential election are increasing anxiety in a market that’s already suffering from skepticism about the economic recovery and concern about the path of central-bank stimulus. With a valuation of about 14 times estimated earnings, companies in the Stoxx 600 are 13 percent cheaper than those on the S&P 500 Index.

Asian stocks fell the most in almost five weeks and volatility gauges spiked amid political turmoil in South Korea and growing angst over next week’s U.S. presidential election. A stronger yen weighed on Tokyo shares. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 1.1 percent to 138.07 as of 4:29 p.m. in Hong Kong amid a global selloff as finance and consumer companies paced losses.

Emerging-market shares headed for their biggest decline in almost three weeks after a poll showed Donald Trump leading Hillary Clinton in the U.S. presidential election race, sapping demand for higher-yielding assets.

Oil fell to the lowest level in more than a month after weekly industry data showed U.S. crude stockpiles expanded while supplies from some OPEC members increased.