European stock markets concluded Tuesday on a generally positive note as investors exercised caution amidst varied earnings reports and economic data. They were also anticipating announcements on monetary policy from the Bank of England and the Federal Reserve.
Attention was drawn to the U.S. Presidential election, where former President Donald Trump was contesting against Kamala Harris.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 saw a modest rise of 0.06%. Germany’s DAX improved by 0.57%, and France’s CAC 40 increased by 0.48%, whereas the U.K.’s FTSE 100 slightly decreased by 0.14%, and Switzerland’s SMI fell by 0.26%.
Several European markets, including Austria, Belgium, Finland, Greece, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia, and Spain, ended on a positive note. Conversely, Denmark, Poland, Portugal, and Turkiye witnessed declines, while Iceland and Sweden remained unchanged.
In the UK markets, Melrose Industries surged by approximately 5.2%, and 3i Group rose by 4.3%. Associated British Foods saw a nearly 4% rise following its robust annual financial results, largely attributed to revenue growth in its retail and food sectors.
Other notable gainers in the UK included BT Group, United Utilities, Severn Trent, Rentokil Initial, BAE Systems, Ashtead Group, Pearson, Diploma, and EasyJet, each climbing between 2% and 4%. The Weir Group, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Next, Intertek Group, Anglo American Plc, Standard Chartered, Beazley, and Compass Group also posted significant gains.
However, Schroders experienced a sharp decline of almost 14% after reporting £2.3 billion ($3 billion) in quarterly outflows, coupled with a cautionary outlook. AstraZeneca fell by 8.4%, and Hikma Pharmaceuticals closed nearly 2% lower. GSK, Land Securities, Endeavour Mining, Entain, JD Sports Fashion, and Croda International also decreased by 1% to 1.6%. Meanwhile, fashion retailer ASOS plunged 6.5% after announcing an increased pretax loss for fiscal 2024.
In Germany, HeidelbergCement and Rheinmetall rose by about 2.6% and 2.4%, respectively, while MTU Aero Engines, Beiersdorf, Henkel, Siemens, Fresenius, Munich RE, Deutsche Boerse, Commerzbank, and Daimler Truck Holding saw gains of 1% to 1.8%. Fresenius Medical Care significantly outperformed market expectations with its Q3 profit results. On the other hand, Deutsche Post dropped by 4.2%, and BASF, Zalando, and Continental fell by 2.2%, 2%, and 1.3%, respectively.
In the French market, Bouygues climbed over 3% following better-than-expected nine-month core earnings. Safran, Schneider Electric, Publicis Groupe, and Thales rose between 2% and 3.1%, while Teleperformance, STMicroElectronics, Airbus Group, Saint-Gobain, Veolia, ArcelorMittal, Accor, and Legrand advanced by 1% to 1.8%. However, Vivendi, Societe Generale, Capgemini, Kering, Pernod Ricard, and Sanofi declined by 1% to 1.7%.
Shares of Swiss staffing company Adecco fell nearly 6% after its Q3 results missed analyst projections.
On the economic data front, France experienced a larger-than-anticipated drop in industrial production in September, according to INSEE, the French statistical office. Overall production declined by 0.9% month-on-month, a reversal from a 1.1% increase in August, marking the first decline in four months. Manufacturing output specifically fell by 0.8%, counteracting the previous 1.4% increase, primarily due to a 0.9% drop in machinery and equipment goods and a 1.8% decrease in 'other manufacturing'.
In the UK, the service sector's growth reached its lowest rate since last November, impeded by heightened uncertainty and a challenging domestic economic outlook, according to the S&P Global purchasing managers' survey. The final services Purchasing Managers' Index recorded 52.0 in October, down from September’s 52.4, though still slightly above the initial 51.8 estimate.