Evonik and Richemont fall as European stock markets slip

LONDON, May 24 (Reuters) - European shares slipped lower on
Tuesday, as the prospect of a possible U.S. interest rate
increase in coming weeks knocked back global stock markets.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 and STOXX 600
.STOXX indexes both fell 0.5 percent in early session trading.
Evonik was among the region's worst performers, dropping 6.4
percent after private equity firm CVC placed Evonik shares onto
the market at a discount price.
Luxury goods groups Richemont CFR.S and Swatch UHR.S
also fell 1.5 percent and 1.2 percent respectively, after data
showed that Swiss watch exports fell 11.1 percent in April,
compared to the previous year's figure.
However, shares in French household equipment manufacturer
SEB SEBF.PA surged 11 percent as investors welcomed SEB's move
to buy WMF, a German maker of coffee machines and silverware,
from KKR in a deal worth 1.6 billion euros ($1.8
billion)including debt.
($1 = 0.8924 euros)