Modest Gains In European Stock Markets, Eurozone Industrial Output Dropped

Bridgette Randall
13 Dec, 2023
New York City

European market indexes were little changed after the release of the eurozone industrial production data and ahead of the Federal Reserve's rate decision later in the day.

Benchmark indexes in Frankfurt, Parris, and London edged higher, and the euro drifted lower.

 

Eurozone Industrial Output Shrank In October

Eurozone industrial output declined 0.7% from the previous month in October, Eurostat reported Wednesday.

The decline in output moderated after falling 1.0% in September.

Capital goods output fell 1.4% following a 0.6% decrease in both intermediate goods and non-durable consumer goods.

On the other hand, durable goods output rose by 0.2%, and energy output rose by 1.1%.

Industrial output declined 6.6% from a year ago.

 

UK GDP Unexpectedly Contracted In October 

The UK GDP unexpectedly contracted by 0.3% in October from the previous month after rising by 0.2% in September, the Office for National Statistics reported on Wednesday.

GDP expanded 0.3% from a year ago, slower than 1.3% in September.

The pound inched lower after the release of the GDP report.

 

Europe Indexes and Yield

The DAX index increased 0.1% to 16,810.98, the CAC-40 index rose 0.3% to 7,566.88, and the FTSE 100 index advanced 0.3% to 7,562.41.

The yield on 10-year German bonds decreased to 2.20%; French bonds traded lower to 2.74%; the UK gilts eased to 3.91%; and Italian bonds inched higher to 3.99%.

The euro traded lower to $1.078, the British pound inched lower to $1.253, and the U.S. dollar eased to 87.62 Swiss cents.

Brent crude decreased $0.15 to $73.09 a barrel, and the Dutch TTF natural gas increased by €0.17 to €34.88 per MWh.

 

Europe Stock Movers

Weak energy prices dragged down the stocks of oil explorers, refiners, and marketers.

BP plc, Shell PLC, TotalEnergies SE, and Repsol fell around 0.3%.

Entain PLC rose 4.5% to 842.40 pence on a report that its chief executive, Jett Nygaard-Andersen, is stepping down and the board has appointed Stella David, a non-executive director, as interim chief executive until a permanent replacement has been found.

In August, the owner of Ladbrokes and Coral bookmakers set aside £585 million to cover penalties and fines related to a tax authority investigation into alleged illegal practices linked to a Turkish-facing online betting and gaming business that the company owned between 2011 and 2017.

Inditex rose 1.2% to €38.75 after the Spanish apparel retailer reported strong holiday sales and lifted its fiscal year 2023 margin outlook.

Net sales in the nine-month period ending in October increased to €25.6 billion from €23.0 billion, net income rose to €4.1 billion from €3.1 billion, and net income per share rose to €1.32 from 99 euro cents.