LONDON — European stocks were lower on Thursday, despite the latest figures showing the bloc’s economy grew more than expected and the European Central Bank’s decision to hold interest rates.
The pan-European Stoxx 600
It’s another busy day for earnings on Thursday with third-quarter results coming from TotalEnergiesVolkswagenCrédit AgricoleSociété GénéraleAnheuser-Busch InBev, BBVASchneider Electric
Novo Nordisk had over 3% knocked off its share price, extending previous losses, amid news it made an unsolicited bid for U.S. drug maker Metsera, which Pfizer
Shellreported a significant drop in third-quarter profit but beat analyst expectations, citing a strong operational performance. It posted adjusted earnings of $5.4 billion for the quarter, and announced another $3.5 billion in share buybacks over the next three months, maintaining the pace of its shareholder returns. Shares in the energy major dipped almost 0.6% in morning trade but clawed back some earlier losses through the session. They were last seen trading 0.3% higher.
Aerospace and defense company Airbus
Dutch lender ING GroepStandard Chartered
Elsewhere, the euro zone economy grew a better-than-expected 0.2% in the third quarter, which narrowly beat estimates of 0.1%, according to flash data from Eurostat on Thursday.
The European Central Bank also held its key deposit facility rate at 2% for the third consecutive time, having last cut rates in June. Economists had branded it a “non event” ahead of the announcement.
Other data releases include unemployment figures, as well as inflation data from Spain and Germany.
Trump, Xi and the Fed
Global markets were also assessing the in-person meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Asia on Thursday.
Trump said he had reached a one-year agreement with Xi on rare earths and other critical minerals, and that Washington will cut fentanyl-related tariffs on Beijing to 10% after their meeting in South Korea. Shares of U.S.-listed firms Critical Metals, USA Rare Earth and Energy Fuels rose in premarket trade on Thursday.
Chinese and Hong Kong markets fell overnight, reversing earlier gains, after the meeting concluded, while other Asia-Pacific markets were mixed.
Investors were also digesting comments from U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. He indicated, at the end of the Fed’s two-day policy meeting on Wednesday, that a rate cut in December was far from a “foregone conclusion.”
The Fed cut the benchmark federal funds rate by 25 basis points, as expected, to bring it to 3.75%-4%
Stock were mixed Thursday as investors digested a batch of Big Tech earnings. While Google parent Alphabet shares popped about 9% on the back of strong results, shares of Meta and Microsoft tumbled about 9% and 2%, respectively.
– CNBC’s Sam Meredith and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
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