European stocks displayed a mixed performance on Monday, with caution prevailing throughout the session due to concerns about the potential impacts of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's global economic policies. Additionally, ongoing tensions in the Middle East and the Russia-Ukraine conflict contributed to the tepid mood.
Investors were poised for guidance on interest rates from speeches by European Central Bank (ECB) officials, including Chief Christine Lagarde, scheduled for later in the day.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 experienced a slight decrease of 0.06%. Germany's DAX slipped by 0.11%, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 showed a gain of 0.57%, and France's CAC 40 rose by 0.12%. Meanwhile, Switzerland's SMI ended with a modest increase of 0.11%.
Across other European markets, Austria, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Spain, and Turkey closed higher. Conversely, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, and Sweden reported declines.
In the UK sector, Melrose Industries saw a significant rise of 7.6% after reporting a 7% increase in revenue for the four-month period ending October 31 and reaffirming its outlook for the rest of the year. DCC and Endeavour Mining climbed 3.6% and 3.5%, respectively. ICG advanced by 2.2%, while BT Group, Entain, Intertek Group, Fresnillo, Vodafone Group, Smith & Nephew, Anglo American Plc, and HSBC Holdings rose between 1.5% and 2%.
On the other hand, B&M European Value Retail experienced a sharp drop of over 8%, and Vistry Group fell by 5.6%. Shares of Convatec Group, Land Securities, EasyJet, Kingfisher, JD Sports Fashion, Taylor Wimpey, British Land, Unite Group, and LondonMetric Property decreased by 1% to 3.7%.
In Germany, Commerzbank surged approximately 2.3%. Deutsche Boerse, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, MTU Aero Engines, Rheinmetall, and Deutsche Post recorded gains ranging from 0.8% to 1.2%. However, Vonovia, Merck, Sartorius, and Siemens Energy suffered losses between 2.3% and 2.7%. Fresenius, Siemens Healthineers, Siemens, and Infineon saw declines of 1.5% to 1.8%. Beiersdorf ended down 1.2%.
In France, Societe Generale, Renault, Credit Agricole, Publicis Groupe, AXA, and TotalEnergies posted gains of 1% to 1.7%. However, Dassault Systemes, Capgemini, and Teleperformance closed weaker. STMicroElectronics dropped over 2%, while Vivendi fell 1.7% following the announcement of anticipated performances for its units Canal+ and Havas SA, which are set to be listed next month. Schneider Electric, L'Oreal, Saint Gobain, and Veolia also experienced notable declines.
Regarding economic developments, Eurostat data revealed a significant increase in the euro area trade surplus in September, driven by a surge in exports to the United States ahead of the presidential election in November, which resulted in Donald Trump's victory. The trade surplus rose to EUR 12.5 billion in September from EUR 9.8 billion the previous year, according to the data.
Provisional figures from the Federal Statistical Office indicated that Switzerland's industrial production expanded further in the third quarter, rising 3.5% year-over-year. However, this growth was slower than the revised 7% recovery observed in the second quarter. In September, industrial production declined 0.9% annually, compared to a 3% drop in August.