Italy stocks lower at close of trade; Investing.com Italy 40 down 0.29%

Investing.com – Germany stocks were lower after the close on Wednesday, as losses in the Construction, Technology and Industrials sectors led shares lower.

At the close in Frankfurt, the DAX fell 0.60%, while the MDAX index fell 0.31%, and the TecDAX index lost 0.35%.

The best performers of the session on the DAX were Deutsche Boerse AG (ETR:DB1Gn), which rose 1.92% or 4.90 points to trade at 259.80 at the close. Meanwhile, Symrise AG Inh. O.N. (ETR:SY1G) added 1.84% or 1.52 points to end at 84.20 and Henkel & Co KGaA AG Pref (ETR:HNKG_p) was up 1.60% or 1.16 points to 73.78 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Siemens Energy AG (ETR:ENR1n), which fell 2.88% or 2.72 points to trade at 91.76 at the close. Airbus Group SE (ETR:AIRG) declined 2.57% or 4.72 points to end at 179.06 and Siemens AG Class N (ETR:SIEGn) was down 1.99% or 4.75 points to 233.50.

The top performers on the MDAX were Redcare Pharmacy NV (ETR:RDC) which rose 1.72% to 94.75, Evonik Industries AG (ETR:EVKn) which was up 1.18% to settle at 17.10 and LEG Immobilien AG (ETR:LEGn) which gained 1.11% to close at 72.90.

The worst performers were K+S AG (ETR:SDFGn) which was down 4.28% to 11.86 in late trade, Jungheinrich AG O.N.VZO (ETR:JUNG_p) which lost 2.31% to settle at 32.20 and Aixtron SE (ETR:AIXGn) which was down 2.17% to 12.84 at the close.

The top performers on the TecDAX were Draegerwerk VZO O.N. (ETR:DRWG_p) which rose 1.17% to 69.30, Siemens Healthineers AG (ETR:SHLG) which was up 1.01% to settle at 48.16 and Deutsche Telekom AG Na (ETR:DTEGn) which gained 0.93% to close at 31.54.

The worst performers were SUSS MicroTec SE (ETR:SMHNn) which was down 3.62% to 26.60 in late trade, Nagarro SE (ETR:NA9n) which lost 3.20% to settle at 51.50 and Kontron AG (ETR:KTN) which was down 2.35% to 24.06 at the close.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange by 342 to 260 and 24 ended unchanged.

Shares in SUSS MicroTec SE (ETR:SMHNn) fell to 52-week lows; down 3.62% or 1.00 to 26.60.

The DAX volatility index, which measures the implied volatility of DAX options, was down 3.85% to 16.58 a new 6-months low.

Gold Futures for December delivery was up 0.86% or 28.75 to $3,387.45 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in October rose 1.68% or 1.04 to hit $62.81 a barrel, while the October Brent oil contract rose 1.64% or 1.08 to trade at $66.87 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.07% to 1.17, while EUR/GBP unchanged 0.31% to 0.87.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.04% at 98.07.

Investing.com – France stocks were lower after the close on Wednesday, as losses in the Industrials, Technology and Technology Hardware & Equipment sectors led shares lower.

At the close in Paris, the CAC 40 declined 0.08%, while the SBF 120 index lost 0.08%.

The best performers of the session on the CAC 40 were Danone SA (EPA:DANO), which rose 3.16% or 2.28 points to trade at 74.52 at the close. Meanwhile, Kering SA (EPA:PRTP) added 2.38% or 5.15 points to end at 221.65 and Pernod Ricard SA (EPA:PERP) was up 2.08% or 2.10 points to 103.00 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Schneider Electric SE (EPA:SCHN), which fell 3.45% or 7.70 points to trade at 215.55 at the close. Compagnie de Saint Gobain SA (EPA:SGOB) declined 3.13% or 3.15 points to end at 97.50 and Airbus Group SE (EPA:AIR) was down 2.56% or 4.70 points to 179.14.

The top performers on the SBF 120 were Danone SA (EPA:DANO) which rose 3.16% to 74.52, Euronext (EPA:ENX) which was up 2.76% to settle at 145.40 and Kering SA (EPA:PRTP) which gained 2.38% to close at 221.65.

The worst performers were Nexans SA (EPA:NEXS) which was down 4.18% to 135.10 in late trade, Schneider Electric SE (EPA:SCHN) which lost 3.45% to settle at 215.55 and Compagnie de Saint Gobain SA (EPA:SGOB) which was down 3.13% to 97.50 at the close.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Paris Stock Exchange by 268 to 208 and 95 ended unchanged.

The CAC 40 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of CAC 40 options, was unchanged 0.00% to 18.96 a new 52-week high.

Gold Futures for December delivery was up 0.84% or 28.32 to $3,387.02 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in October rose 1.72% or 1.06 to hit $62.83 a barrel, while the October Brent oil contract rose 1.69% or 1.11 to trade at $66.90 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.06% to 1.17, while EUR/GBP unchanged 0.31% to 0.87.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.04% at 98.08.

Investing.com – Belgium stocks were higher after the close on Wednesday, as gains in the Utilities, Consumer Services and Healthcare sectors led shares higher.

At the close in Brussels, the BEL 20 rose 0.48% to hit a new all time high.

The best performers of the session on the BEL 20 were Elia (EBR:ELI), which rose 1.74% or 1.70 points to trade at 99.30 at the close. Meanwhile, Lotus Bakeries (EBR:LOTB) added 1.47% or 120.00 points to end at 8,280.00 and UCB SA (EBR:UCB) was up 1.40% or 2.70 points to 195.20 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Ackermans & Van Haaren NV (EBR:ACKB), which fell 1.04% or 2.40 points to trade at 228.40 at the close. Melexis NV (EBR:MLXS) declined 0.74% or 0.50 points to end at 67.50 and D’Ieteren NV (EBR:IETB) was down 0.69% or 1.30 points to 187.50.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the Brussels Stock Exchange by 52 to 42 and 11 ended unchanged.

Gold Futures for December delivery was up 0.84% or 28.20 to $3,386.90 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in October rose 1.70% or 1.05 to hit $62.82 a barrel, while the October Brent oil contract rose 1.64% or 1.08 to trade at $66.87 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.05% to 1.17, while EUR/GBP unchanged 0.31% to 0.87.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.03% at 98.09.

Investing.com – Sweden stocks were lower after the close on Wednesday, as losses in the Industrials, Oil & Gas and Financials sectors led shares lower.

At the close in Stockholm, the OMX Stockholm 30 lost 0.17%.

The best performers of the session on the OMX Stockholm 30 were Svenska Handelsbanken AB A (ST:SHBa), which rose 1.53% or 1.90 points to trade at 125.75 at the close. Meanwhile, AstraZeneca PLC (ST:AZN) added 1.48% or 22.50 points to end at 1,546.00 and Tele2 AB (ST:TEL2b) was up 1.45% or 2.35 points to 164.20 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Atlas Copco AB Class A (ST:ATCOa), which fell 1.81% or 2.80 points to trade at 149.50 at the close. NIBE Industrier AB ser. B (ST:NIBEb) declined 1.36% or 0.60 points to end at 44.90 and EQT AB (ST:EQTAB) was down 1.33% or 4.60 points to 340.20.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Stockholm Stock Exchange by 424 to 331 and 64 ended unchanged.

Shares in Tele2 AB (ST:TEL2b) rose to 5-year highs; gaining 1.45% or 2.35 to 164.20.

Crude oil for October delivery was up 1.86% or 1.15 to $62.92 a barrel. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Brent oil for delivery in October rose 1.78% or 1.17 to hit $66.96 a barrel, while the December Gold Futures contract rose 0.85% or 28.47 to trade at $3,387.17 a troy ounce.

EUR/SEK was unchanged 0.04% to 11.18, while USD/SEK unchanged 0.01% to 9.59.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.04% at 98.08.

Investing.com - European indices were mixed on Wednesday following a tech-led selloff on Wall Street, while U.K. inflation came in hotter than expected, raising doubts over future monetary easing by the Bank of England. 

The DAX index in Germany dropped 0.7%, while the CAC 40 in France slipped 0.1% and the FTSE 100 in the U.K. rallied 1.1%. 

Tech-led weakness 

European markets have followed their Asian counterparts lower on Wednesday, following the overnight weakness on Wall Street after tech stocks fretted about President Donald Trump’s growing influence over the sector.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is looking into the government taking equity stakes in Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) as well as other chip companies in exchange for grants under the CHIPS Act, according to a Reuters report.

Additionally, the outlook for European corporate health has slightly deteriorated, the latest earnings forecasts showed on Tuesday, marking a change of direction after several weeks of improvement.

European companies are expected to report growth of 4.6% in second-quarter earnings, on average, according to LSEG I/B/E/S data. That is slightly below the 4.8% rise analysts had expected a week ago.

U.K. inflation rose in July 

U.K. consumer price inflation increased to 3.8% in July from 3.6% in June, above the consensus forecast of 3.7%, according to official data released Wednesday. This was the highest for the headline number since January 2024.

The Bank of England had anticipated this inflation rise in its August Monetary Policy Report, predicting CPI would reach an 18-month high of 3.8% in July.

Despite the rising inflation, analysts at Capital Economics maintain that a November interest rate cut remains possible, but they acknowledge the risk that inflation expectations and wage growth could rise further, potentially delaying the next rate cut until 2026.

Inflation for the eurozone as a whole was also released, showing that the annual CPI figure remained at 2.0% in July, matching the European Central Bank’s medium-term target.

Alcon (NYSE:ALC) cuts sales guidance 

The European defense sector is still in the doldrums Wednesday, on raised hopes of peace in Ukraine.

Elsewhere, Ithaca Energy (LON:ITH) reported a sharp jump in first-half earnings and the North Sea oil and gas producer upgraded its 2025 outlook on the back of higher production, stronger cash flow, and disciplined cost control.

Alcon (SIX:ALCC) lowered its 2025 sales guidance on Tuesday, citing the continued drag from U.S. tariffs as the Swiss-American eye-care company generates almost half of its revenue in the U.S..

FLSmidth (CSE:FLS) posted second-quarter results that matched its earlier guidance, but the Danish mining equipment maker showed a sharp revenue decline and continued losses in its Products division.

Crude edge higher

Oil prices rose Wednesday, bouncing after the previous session’s losses as traders awaited fresh news over the next steps to end the war in Ukraine.

At 04:00 ET, Brent futures gained 1.6% to $66.85 a barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 1.7% to $62.81 a barrel.

Prices settled down more than 1% on Tuesday on optimism that a deal to end the war seemed closer, which would likely lead to an easing of sanctions on Russia and an increase in global supply.