Major European Markets Close Mixed

The major European markets failed to hold early gains and closed mixed on Tuesday, as investors made cautious moves, reacting to the latest batch of earnings news and looking ahead to the release of the Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy meeting, due on Wednesday.

Investors also tracked news on the coronavirus front and updates on restrictions. Germany has decided to allow vaccinated travelers or people who have recovered from the virus to skip testing and quarantine.

The French government is moving forward with its plans to almost completely end coronavirus restrictions by June 30.

The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.17%. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 edged up 0.02%, Germany’s DAX shed 0.07% and France’s CAC 40 ended 0.21% down, while Switzerland’s SMI edged up 0.06%.

Other markets in Europe fared well and ended mostly higher amid continued optimism about economic recovery. Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden and Turkey closed on positive note.

Greece drifted lower, while Belgium, Denmark and Ireland ended weak.

In the UK market, IAG shares rallied 3.6% and Sage Group advanced 3.1%, JD Sports Fashion Group (JD.TO), Natwest Group, BT Group, Scottish Mortgage, Pershing Square Holdings and Kingfisher gained 2 to 3%.

Micro Focus shares gained over 6% after the company said its first-half performance was set to be ahead of market views. Tobacco company Imperial Brands shares advanced 1.4% after it reported a modest rise in first-half revenue and backed annual outlook.

Vodafone Group shares plunged nearly 9% after the mobile operator missed market expectations with a 1.2% in full-year adjusted earnings.

Antofagasta declined more than 5%, Fresnillo ended 2.3% down and DCC closed lower by 1.7%.

In France, Engie gained about 3% after backing its 2021 financial guidance and reaffirming its dividend policy. Air France-KLM, Vivendi, Faurecia, Publicis Groupe and Accor also closed notably higher.

Credit Agricole tumbled more than 6%. Bouygues declined after Groupe TF1, Groupe M6, Groupe Bouygues and RTL Group said that they have signed agreements to enter into exclusive negotiations to merge the activities of Groupe TF1 and Groupe M6 and create a major French media group.

Thales, Orange, Bouygues and ArcelorMittal also closed weak.

In the German market, Deutsche Wohnen surged up more than 4%. Lufthansa gained about 2.7% and Deutsche Post gained nearly 2%. Continental, Volkswagen and Covestro also closed notably higher.

Shares of leasing firm Grenke soared more than 17% after the company announced it has received unqualified audit opinion for the annual and consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2020.

Siemens, Deutsche Telekom, Adidas, Fresenius and Bayer ended weak.

In economic releases, the euro zone economy shrank by 0.6% sequentially in the three months to March of 2021, the second estimate showed – matching expectations. Year-on-year, the bloc’s GDP dropped by 1.8% in the first quarter.

Separately, the region’s employment fell by 0.3% and 2.1% on sequential and annual basis, respectively in the first quarter of 2021.

Britain’s unemployment rate unexpectedly ticked lower in the first quarter despite the national lockdown, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics.

The jobless rate fell 0.3 percentage points to 4.8% in the first quarter. This was also below economists’ forecast of 4.9%. At the same time, the employment rate was estimated at 75.2%, up 0.2 percentage points from the previous quarter.