Belgium stocks lower at close of trade; BEL 20 down 0.30%

Investing.com -- British stocks declined on Wednesday as investors digested corporate earnings, while the pound weakened against the dollar but held above $1.37, broader European markets traded lower, and luxury stocks fell after LVMH reported results.

The blue-chip index FTSE 100 fell 0.5% and the British GBP/USD dropped 0.5% against the dollar to 1.3780. 

The DAX index in Germany dropped 0.4%, the CAC 40 in France fell 1.1%. 

UK round up

Pets at Home Group PLC (LON:PETSP) announced that retail volumes returned to growth in its third quarter. The UK pet care group maintained its full-year profit outlook, supported by growth in its veterinary business. Retail like-for-like consumer revenue fell 1.1% in the quarter, improving from previous declines of 2.8% in the first quarter and 1.7% in the second quarter. The company expects full-year 2026 profit before tax to align with consensus expectations of £93 million.

Debenhams Group (LON:DEBS) shares increased more than 5% after raising its full-year earnings outlook due to stronger-than-expected trading across core brands and improved performance at PrettyLittleThing. The company now forecasts adjusted EBITDA for total operations of £50 million for the year ending February 28, 2026, up from previous guidance of about £45 million issued in November.

Fresnillo PLC (LON:FRES) reduced its 2026 production guidance, citing operational phasing and lower grades at key mines. The precious metals miner cut its silver production forecast to 42-46.5 million ounces from 45-51 million ounces, and gold production guidance to 500-550 thousand ounces from 515-565 thousand ounces. These revisions represent a 9% reduction in silver guidance and a 4-5% cut in gold forecasts compared to consensus estimates.

British pub operator Marston’s PLC (LON:MARS) shares fell over 13% after reporting flat like-for-like sales growth for the 17 weeks ended January 24, underperforming competitor Mitchells & Butlers, which posted a 4.5% increase over 15 weeks through January 10.

In other market news, Mobico Group PLC (LON:MCG) shares rose over 14% after confirming advanced discussions with German transport authorities. The company stated that one of its units is in talks with five public transport authorities in Germany to realign rail contract terms in North Rhine-Westphalia and nearby regions, aiming to create a more sustainable business model.

Life Science REIT PLC (LON:LABS) stock surged 20.1% after British Land Company PLC (LON:BLND) announced a recommended cash and share offer valuing each Life Science REIT share at approximately 42.8 pence. This represents a 21% premium to the January 27 closing price of 35.4 pence per share. The transaction, worth about £150 million, is structured as 14.1 pence in cash and 0.07 new British Land shares per Life Science REIT share.

Luxury stocks felt the pressure as LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE (EPA:LVMH) fell sharply on Wednesday, dragging down European luxury shares after reporting weak holiday-quarter sales and expressing caution about future prospects. Shares of the Louis Vuitton and Dior owner dropped as much as 7%. The decline spread across the luxury sector, with Kering falling over 3%, while Richemont, Hermès and Burberry declined between 1% and 2.5%. Salvatore Ferragamo shares fell about 6.3% following its year-end update on Tuesday. LVMH posted 1% organic sales growth in the fourth quarter, beating expectations for a slight decline. However, its fashion and leather goods division—considered a key indicator of luxury demand—recorded a 3% fall in organic sales.

Investing.com -- U.S. stocks were mixed on Wednesday, giving up earlier gains that saw the benchmark S&P 500 index briefly breaching the historic 7,000 points level for the first time ever. Traders were cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision and key earnings reports from Big Tech later in the day.   

At 11:48 ET (16:48 GMT), the S&P 500 was down 0.1% to 6,974.03 points. It crossed the 7,000 mark immediately after the opening bell, hitting a session high at 7,002.52 points.

The benchmark gauge’s 7,000 milestone was celebrated by President Donald Trump, who proclaimed "America is back!!!" on his Truth Social service.

Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1% to 49,032.10 points. The NASDAQ Composite was now down 0.1% to 23,796.43 points.

Fed decision looms large

Investor attention is firmly focused on the Federal Reserve, which is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged when it announces its decision later in the session.

Markets have priced in a pause as policymakers digest recent economic data that has pointed to easing inflation, while remaining above target, as well as steady growth and a resilient labor market.

At the same time, U.S. consumer confidence tanked in January to its lowest level in 12 years, a gauge from the Conference Board showed, underscoring the pessimism many of Americans are feeling as the risk of a partial U.S. government shutdown over a backlash to deadly shootings by immigration enforcement agents in Minneapolis rises while fresh tariff threats from President Donald Trump loom in the background.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s comments will be closely watched for clues on how long rates may stay at current levels and when cuts could eventually come.

"The main focus will therefore be on possible dissent and communication, also around the issue of the Fed’s independence," ING analysts said in a note. "The decision will also be overshadowed by President Trump’s upcoming pick of a new Fed Chair." 

Powell’s term ends in May, and Trump said on Tuesday he will announce his pick for the new head of the Federal Reserve soon.

Major tech earnings to shape market direction

Earnings are another major driver this week, with four members of the so-called “Magnificent Seven” technology group set to report.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META), and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) are all due to release results after the close Wednesday, followed by Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) on Thursday.

Together, these companies carry significant weight in major indexes, and their outlooks on artificial intelligence spending, cloud demand and consumer trends are expected to shape market direction in the days ahead.

Record quarterly orders from Dutch chip equipment giant ASML Holding NV (AS:ASML) lifted chip stocks and were a shot in the arm for the AI trade. The company also said it would shed about 1,700 jobs, mostly in the Netherlands. Meanwhile, its current quarter revenue guidance comfortably beat expectations. 

Also helping the AI trade was Texas Instruments (NASDAQ:TXN). The stock soared after the analog chipmaker’s rosy quarterly forecast showed the AI data center boom was driving demand for chips beyond Nvidia’s advanced processors.    

Seagate Technology (NASDAQ:STX) stock gained after the memory device maker reported second-quarter adjusted earnings that exceeded expectations, helped by the rapid buildout of artificial intelligence data centers.

Beyond tech, AT&T (NYSE:T) stock rose after the telecom giant forecast annual profit above market expectations, on bets that its wireless and fiber network expansion would allow the U.S. carrier to tap growing 5G and high-speed internet demand.

Swedish streaming platform Spotify (NYSE:SPOT) paid out more than $11 billion to the music industry in 2025, marking the largest annual payment to music from a retailer in history.

Gold hits another record high

Gold prices hit a record high above $5,300 an ounce on Wednesday as strong haven demand, underpinned by caution before the conclusion of the Fed meeting later in the day, and prolonged weakness in the dollar benefited metal markets.

Other precious metals also remained upbeat, with silver and platinum both remaining close to recent record highs. 

Oil prices edged higher, adding to the recent gains following the severe winter storm in the U.S.. 

Brent futures added 0.6% to $66.99 a barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 0.8% to $62.87 a barrel.

Both benchmarks surged about 3% on Tuesday, after closing at the end of last week at their highest points since January 14. 

Estimates suggest U.S. producers lost up to 2 million barrels per day, or roughly 15% of national output, as the storm disrupted energy infrastructure and power grids.

Ayushman Ojha and Peter Nurse contributed to this article

Investing.com – Poland stocks were higher after the close on Wednesday, as gains in the Basic Materials, Oil & Gas and Chemicals sectors led shares higher.

At the close in Warsaw, the WIG30 rose 0.78% to hit a new all time high.

The best performers of the session on the WIG30 were CD PROJEKT SA (WA:CDR), which rose 7.45% or 19.80 points to trade at 285.60 at the close. Meanwhile, KGHM Polska Miedz SA (WA:KGH) added 6.23% or 20.70 points to end at 352.70 and Cyfrowy Polsat SA (WA:CPS) was up 3.10% or 0.40 points to 13.30 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were BUDIMEX SA (WA:BDXP), which fell 1.68% or 11.60 points to trade at 678.40 at the close. Enea SA (WA:ENAE) declined 1.60% or 0.34 points to end at 20.90 and mBank SA (WA:MBK) was down 1.41% or 14.50 points to 1,017.00.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Warsaw Stock Exchange by 294 to 251 and 102 ended unchanged.

Shares in CD PROJEKT SA (WA:CDR) rose to 3-years highs; rising 7.45% or 19.80 to 285.60.

Crude oil for March delivery was up 0.79% or 0.49 to $62.88 a barrel. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Brent oil for delivery in April rose 0.60% or 0.40 to hit $66.99 a barrel, while the April Gold Futures contract rose 3.74% or 191.49 to trade at $5,312.09 a troy ounce.

EUR/PLN was up 0.23% to 4.21, while USD/PLN rose 1.17% to 3.53.

The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.38% at 96.42.

Investing.com -- Appian Corp (NASDAQ:APPN) shares rose 1% in Wednesday trading following a regulatory disclosure from activist hedge fund Fivespan Partners, LP. The San Francisco-based firm revealed a 6.2% stake in the enterprise software provider, according to a 13D filing submitted late Tuesday.

The hedge fund now controls 2,630,907 total shares, signaling a significant push into the low-code automation space. "The Reporting Persons acquired the securities of the Issuer reported herein based on their belief that the securities were undervalued and represented an attractive investment opportunity," the filing stated.

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Fivespan’s entry comes as Appian faces increasing pressure to revitalize a stock price that has struggled following a dramatic valuation reset from its pandemic-era heights. The stock reached an all-time high of $235.24 in January 2021 before a broader rotation away from high-multiple, unprofitable tech names triggered an 86% decline over the past 5 years.

Fivespan indicated it intends to engage deeply with management on issues ranging from capital allocation to board composition and mergers and acquisitions. According to the filing, discussions "will cover a range of issues, including those relating to the business of the Issuer, management, board composition (which include whether it makes sense for a Fivespan employee to be on the Issuer’s board of directors), investor communications, operations, capital allocation, dividend policy, financial condition, mergers and acquisitions strategy, overall business strategy, executive compensation, and corporate governance."

The move mirrors Fivespan’s recent activity at Qiagen NV (NYSE:QGEN), where the fund successfully placed operating partner Mark Stevenson on the board. Stevenson, a former Thermo Fisher Scientific executive, is now viewed by some speculators as a potential candidate for Qiagen’s top role, as the company is seeking a permanent successor for outgoing chief executive Thierry Bernard.

Additionally, Bloomberg recently reported that Qiagen is exploring strategic options, including a sale, though it is unclear how much influence Fivespan is exerting as the company reviews alternatives.

Both Fivespan and Appian have yet to respond to Investing.com’s request for commentary.

Investing.com -- Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) stock declined 9% Wednesday after short seller Gotham City Research published a critical report alleging accounting irregularities and undisclosed related-party transactions.

The report, titled "Carvana: Bridgecrest and the Undisclosed Transactions and Debts," claims that Carvana’s 2023-2024 earnings are overstated by more than $1 billion and that the company is far more dependent on related parties than disclosed. Gotham City Research specifically highlighted the relationship between Carvana and DriveTime, a company also controlled by Ernie Garcia II, the father of Carvana’s CEO.

According to the short seller, DriveTime burned over $1 billion in cash flow from operating activities in 2023-2024 while taking on significant debt. The report alleges that DriveTime’s leverage sits at 20-40 times earnings, far higher than historical levels, which were capped at 10.3 times before 2023.

The report further claims that Carvana sells loans to "third parties" at inflated rates while booking gains on sales, and that Bridgecrest, a company fully owned by Garcia II, charges these third parties very low servicing fees in exchange. Gotham City Research also pointed to what it calls accounting irregularities in sales commissions and servicing reported figures.

The short seller predicts that Carvana’s 2025 10-K will be delayed, its 2023/2024 10-Ks will be restated, and that Grant Thornton, which serves as auditor for Carvana, DriveTime/Bridgecrest, and GoFi, will resign.

Carvana has not yet responded to the allegations in the report.