European Shares Decline On Global Growth Worries

European stocks fell on Thursday as investors digested mixed corporate earnings from top U.S. companies and fretted about the economic outlook.

Germany’s producer price index climbed 7.5 percent year-over-year in March, much slower than the 15.8 percent rise in February, preliminary data from Destatis showed earlier in the day.

Survey results out of France showed the country’s manufacturing confidence index dropped to 101.0 in April from 104 in the previous month. The expected score was 103.

The euro zone posted a trade surplus in February for the first time since September 2021 as exports grew on year at a faster pace than imports.

The pan European STOXX 600 dropped 0.4 percent to 466.50 after closing 0.1 percent lower on Wednesday.

The German DAX slipped 0.8 percent, France’s CAC 40 index slipped 0.4 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 was down 0.1 percent.

Mining and energy stocks were among the worst hit as commodity prices declined on global growth worries.

Anglo American fell 2.5 percent, Antofagasta lost more than 4 percent, BP Plc gave up about 1 percent and Shell was down 0.6 percent.

Babcock International fell over 2 percent after the engineering company announced it might have to provide for a one-off provision of between 50 million and 100 million pounds ($62.2 million-$124.4 million) in fiscal 2023 results.

Iron ore firm Ferrexpo gained 2 percent after Ukraine’s supreme court ruled in its favor in a case seeking to invalidate a share purchase deal.

Centamin gave up 1.4 percent after first-quarter gold production slipped sequentially.

Auto and aircrafts parts supplied Senior climbed 1.2 percent after posting 16 percent annual revenue growth.

Finnish company Nokia Oyj plummeted 6 percent after reporting weaker-than-expected earnings for the first quarter.

Sweden’s AB Volvo rose nearly 2 percent after the truck maker lifted its outlook for key heavy-duty truck markets in Europe and North America this year.

Renault SA plunged 7.7 percent after the French carmaker said it is reviewing its pricing policies for electric cars worldwide.

Channel tunnel operator Getlink SE rallied 2.6 percent after its first-quarter revenue jumped 126 percent year-on-year.

Energy group Rexel gained more than 1 percent after reporting higher Q1 sales and confirming its FY23 view.

Sartorius Stedim Biotech shares were down more than 7 percent after the Franco-German lab equipment maker reported a decline in Q1 2023 profit and revenue.

Business News