European stocks saw a general decline in cautious trading on Monday as investors responded to weak business activity data and recent political developments in the region.
Business activity in the Eurozone contracted more than anticipated in September, with the PMI dropping to 48.9 from 51.0, indicating a slowdown in both the services and manufacturing sectors. Similarly, business growth in the U.K. also softened during the same month.
In political news, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democratic Party (SPD) narrowly defeated the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in an election in the eastern state of Brandenburg, based on official results released this morning.
In France, Prime Minister Michel Barnier suggested that his new government might raise taxes on large corporations and the wealthiest individuals to address the budget deficit.
In the U.K., Finance Minister Rachel Reeves assured that there would be no return to austerity or widespread cuts despite ongoing financial challenges.
The pan-European STOXX 600 was slightly lower at 514.06, following a 1.4 percent drop on Friday. The German DAX gained 0.2 percent, while France's CAC 40 decreased by 0.6 percent, and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 remained largely unchanged.
On the corporate front, shares of UBS Group fell roughly 1 percent amid reports that Swiss financial market regulator FINMA is investigating Credit Suisse's collapse ahead of its merger with UBS.
Germany’s Siemens saw a slight increase as it announced plans to carve out its eMobility business. Scout24 SE, a digital services provider for the real estate sector, surged 2 percent following the announcement of a share buyback program worth up to 150 million euros, set to commence in the coming weeks and conclude in 2026.
Commerzbank dropped 4.6 percent after the German government stated it would retain its 12 percent stake in the lender and not sell any additional shares for the foreseeable future.
AstraZeneca fell by 1.4 percent after the British pharmaceutical company revealed that its TROPION-Breast01 Phase III trial of datopotamab deruxtecan did not achieve statistical significance in overall survival compared to chemotherapy.
Rightmove rallied 2.1 percent following an improved takeover offer from Australia's REA Group for the British property portal.