European Stocks Close Mostly Higher As Investors Focus On Earnings, Economic Data

(RTTNews) - European stocks closed mostly higher on Wednesday with investors shrugging off concerns about tariffs for now and focusing on corporate earnings and regional economic data.

Investors digested the data on manufacturing and services sector activity in European countries.

With U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff threats against several major trading partners raising fears of a prolonged trade war, the outlook for global economic growth remains somewhat uncertain.

The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.47%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 gained 0.61% and Germany's DAX ended higher by 0.37% and France's CAC 40 closed down 0.19%. Switzerland's SMI ended stronger by 0.83%.

Among other markets in Europe, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Portugal, Russia and Spain ended higher.

Greece, Iceland, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Turkiye closed weak, while Austria and Netherlands ended flat.

In the UK market, GSK climbed 7.61%. The pharmaceutical giant reported robust 2024 performance and lifted its long-term sales outlook.

Fresnillo closed nearly 6% up. Marks & Spencer gained 3.65% and Endeavour Mining rallied 3%. Tesco, Land Securities, Schrodders, Sainsbury (J), LondonMetric Property, BT Group, Beazley, M&G, Taylor Wimpey, British Land Company, British American Tobacco and Phoenix Group Holdings closed higher by 2 to 2.7%.

Diageo, DCC and Croda International lost 3.2 to 4%. Spirax Group, Prudential, Halma, Diploma, Ashtead Group and Pershing Square Holdings ended down 1.2 to 2.2%.

In the German market, Vonovia climbed nearly 3.5%, Infineon gained about 2.8% and Siemens Energy closed 2.6% up. Zalando gained 2%, while SAP and Siemens Healthineers ended higher by about 1.4% and 1%, respectively.

Symrise, Continental, Daimler Truck Holding, Sartorius, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, BMW and Porsche lost 1.4 to 2.7%.

In the French market, Publicis Groupe gained more than 2%. Unibail Rodamco climbed about 1.3%. TotalEnergies gained 1.7%. The company raised dividend and maintained the pace of share buybacks despite reporting a drop in fourth-quarter earnings.

Dassault Systemes, ArcelorMittal, Essilor, Sanofi, Saint-Gobain and Capgemini posted moderate gains. Credit Agricole moved higher after reporting better-than-expected earnings on higher revenue in the final quarter of 2024.

Pernod Ricard closed nearly 4% down. Renault lost 2.7%, while STMicroElectronics, Schneider Electric, L'Oreal, BNP Paribas, Vivendi, Michelin, Veolia, Kering and LVMH lost 1.3 to 2.4%.

On the economic front, the HCOB Eurozone Composite PMI rose to 50.2 in January of 2025 from 49.6 in the previous month, in line with the preliminary estimate and ahead of expectations of 49.7.

The services sector PMI came in at 51.3 for January, down from 51.6 in December 2024, while the manufacturing sector PMI score came in at 46.6, compared to 45.1 in December.

The HCOB Germany Composite PMI was revised up to 50.5 in January 2025 from a preliminary reading of 50.1 and 48.0 in December, marking its first expansion in seven months.

Services sector expanded in January, with the PMI reading coming in at 52.5, while the manufacturing sector contracted at a slower pace, with the PMI score coming in at 45.0.

The HCOB France Composite PMI for January 2025 was revised down to 47.6, from the flash estimate of 48.3, just above December's 47.5. That marks the fifth consecutive monthly contraction in output.

Both manufacturing and services contributed to the downturn in economic activity in January, with manufacturing sector declining at a slower pace. The manufacturing PMI came in with a score of 45 for January, compared to 41.9 in December 2024. The services PMI came in at 48.2 for January, down from 49.3 in December.

France's industrial production fell 0.4% month-on-month in December 2024, following a downwardly revised 0.1% increase in November. The drop was driven by a 0.7% contraction in manufacturing output.

The S&P Global UK Composite PMI rose to 50.6 in January of 2025 from 50.4 in the previous month, recovering from a 14-month low.

The services sector PMI reading came in at 50.8 for January, after a 51.1 score a month earlier, while the manufacturing PMI came in at 48.3 vs 47.0.