European stocks dropped for a third straight day on Friday, suffering their lowest close in more than a year as trade war fears returned to the fore after tensions between the U.S. and China escalated.

It has been a brutal stretch for U.S. equities. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the broad-market S&P 500 are looking at an unusually unsightly March, amid a rise in volatility and heightened concerns about trade wars.

Selling eased for Asia-Pacific stocks as the morning progressed Monday, though trade actions between China and the U.S. continue to be the central preoccupations for market participants. The Wall Street Journal reported, however, that China and the U.S. have quietly started negotiating to improve American access to mainland markets.