European stocks drop about 4% at the open

European stocks opened with heavy losses on Monday, with the German DAX dropping 4.5%. It came after a weekend in which coronavirus cases spread in the U.S. and Europe with the shorthanded U.S. Senate failing to advance a stimulus package. German Chancellor Angela Merkel was quarantined after coming up into contact with a doctor who tested positive for the virus. Early movers included interdealer broker TP Icap , which plunged 47%, and IWG , which dropped after halting its dividend and stock buyback program.