FX.co ★ European stocks continues to grow steadily

At Thursday's trading, the key exchange indicators of Western Europe showed mainly an increase amid strong financial reports of large European companies. Investors are assessing the final macroeconomic data for the eurozone and are anxiously awaiting the outcome of the Bank of England meeting.

Thus, by the time of writing, the aggregate indicator of the leading companies in Europe, the STOXX Europe 600, increased by 0.31% to 439.64 points.

The French CAC 40 gained 0.36% and the German DAX rose 0.66%. Meanwhile, the British FTSE 100 declined by 0.29% due to the active strengthening of the pound.

Growth and Fall LeadersThe value of securities of the German carrier Deutsche Lufthansa AG soared by 5.8% on the background of the company's return to net profit of 259 million euros after a loss of 756 million euros a year earlier in April-June, as well as due to an optimistic annual forecast. At the same time, Lufthansa management warned that in the next quarter it will be able to carry out only about 80% of pre-crisis passenger traffic due to a shortage of airport and airline personnel.

The share price of the German manufacturer of sporting goods and clothing Adidas increased by 2.1%, despite the fact that in the second quarter of the 2022 fiscal year, the company's net profit sank by 26%. At the same time, Adidas revenue increased by 10.2% despite the damage caused by the suspension of business in Russia.

The quotes of the French bank Credit Agricole rose by 4.6%. On Thursday, the company reported revenue growth for April-June by 8.8% year-on-year amid high activity of the investment banking division. The French lender's net profit also increased and significantly exceeded market expectations.

The market capitalization of the German online retailer Zalando soared by 7.6% on Thursday. The company confirmed its annual forecast, despite a decrease in net profit in the past quarter.

The value of the securities of the British pharmaceutical company Hikma Pharmaceuticals sank by 8.6% amid a drop in pre-tax profit in the first half of the year to $215 million from $319 million a year earlier.

The quotes of the British clothing retailer Next rose by 2.6%. The day before, the company improved its revenue and profit forecast until the end of this year due to the recovery of sales in retail stores after the recession associated with the coronavirus epidemic.

The shares of the German pharmaceutical concern Bayer AG fell by 2%, despite the fact that in the second quarter the company reduced its net loss and increased revenue.

Market Sentiment

The British pound was strengthening against the dollar by 0.1% due to the market's expectation of a sharper increase in the base rate in the UK by 0.5 percentage points at once – to 1.75% from 1.25% – in the central bank's meeting.

According to the final assessment of analysts, the composite PMI business activity index in the eurozone industry in July amounted to 49.9 points, not 49.4 points, as previously stated.

At the same time, the July PMI of the services sector of the EU countries decreased to 51.2 points compared to June. Earlier, experts estimated the indicator at 50.6 points.

According to the Statistical Office of the European Union, the level of retail sales in the region sank by 1.2% in June compared to May. Previously, analysts had predicted that the indicator would remain unchanged.

Meanwhile, Germany's composite PMI in July was 48.1 points against 51.3 points a month earlier, and in the services sector this indicator sank to 49.7 points from 52.4 points.

The general index of business activity in France fell to 51.7 points from 52.5 points in June, and in the services sector – to 53.2 points from 53.9 points.

The Italian PMI fell to 47.7 points from June's 51.3 points, and in the services sector, the indicator sank to 48.4 points from 51.6 points.

At the same time, the UK PMI indicators also turned out to be lower than the initial estimate. So, in the past month, the country's composite PMI sank to 52.1 points from June's 53.7 points, and the PMI in the service sector – to 52.6 points from 53.4 points, and not to 53.3 points, as previously stated.