European Markets Struggled In June Amid Growing Political Uncertainties

Bridgette Randall
28 Jun, 2024
Frankfurt

European markets were mixed in Friday's trading as investors reviewed the slew of economic updates in the region. 

Benchmark indexes in Paris edged lower, but the indexes in London and Frankfurt advanced. 

For the week and the month, all three leading indexes are down. 

For the month, the CAC-40 index dropped 7.3%, the DAX index fell 2.4%, and the FTSE 100 index edged down 0.3%.  

Preliminary polls suggest that the far-right parties are likely to gain a substantial number of seats in the French national election in the first round of voting on June 30. 

France's consumer price inflation slowed to 2.1% in June from 2.3% in May, the statistical office INSEE reported on Friday. 

The annual pace of inflation dropped to the lowest level since August 2021, after food and energy prices advanced at a slower pace. 

Spain's consumer price inflation slowed to 3.4% in June, according to the preliminary estimate released by the statistical agency INE on Friday. 

The annual pace of inflation eased from a one-year high of 3.6% in May, and core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, held steady at 3.0%. 

Italy's consumer price inflation held steady at 0.8%, and core inflation was also steady at 2.0%. 

In addition, the number of people looking for jobs rose more than expected, the Federal Labour Office reported Friday. 

The number of jobless people increased from 19,000 to 2.78 million in June, marking the 18th consecutive month of rising unemployment. 

The seasonally adjusted jobless rate increased to 6%, the highest since May 2021. 

 

Europe Indexes and Yields

The DAX index increased by 0.4% to 18,284.50; the CAC-40 index declined by 0.5% to 7,490.44; and the FTSE 100 index rose by 0.3% to 8,205.38. 

The yield on 10-year German bonds edged higher to 2.46%; French bonds inched higher to 3.25%; the UK gilts edged lower to 4.15%; and Italian bonds increased to 4.08%.

The euro edged lower to $1.07; the British pound inched lower to $1.264; and the U.S. dollar advanced to 89.98 Swiss cents.

Brent crude increased $0.54 to $85.80 a barrel, and the Dutch TTF natural gas fell by €0.03 to €34.24 per MWh.

 

Europe Stock Movers

Nokia increased 0.2% to €3.51 after the telecom equipment maker agreed to acquire Infinera for $2.3 billion to bolster its optical networking business. 

Delivery Hero declined 2.2% to €22.25 after the food-delivery company appointed Marie-Anne Popp as the interim chief financial officer after current CFO Emmanuel Thomassin resigned. 

Deutsche Beteiligungs AG decreased 7.5% to €25.05 after the German private equity fund manager said it plans to raise €100 million through the sale of convertible bonds maturing in 2030. 

JD Sports Fashion declined 5.2% to 119.75 pence, and Puma SE fell 4.2% to €42.12 after Nike said annual sales are likely to decline in the current year.