Rising Trade Tensions and Political Instability Weighed In Europe Trading, UK GDP Growth Disappointed

Bridgette Randall
15 Nov, 2024
London

European markets turned cautious in Friday's trading as investors reviewed the latest economic updates and corporate news. 

Benchmark indexes in Paris, Frankfurt, Milan, and London traded in a tight range with a negative bias following a surge of as much as 1% in the previous session. 

For the second week in a row, market sentiment has been cautious amid worries of an expected rise in trade tensions with the U.S. and China overshadowed in 2025. 

On the economic front, Germany's annual wholesale price inflation slowed to 0.8% in October, slower than 1.1% in September, the Federal Statistical Office, or Destatis, reported Friday. 

The U.K.'s GDP contracted in September, and growth slowed to the lowest level in three quarters amid weak consumer spending. 

On a sequential basis, GDP growth slowed to an increase of mere 0.1% and below 0.5% in the second quarter and 0.7% in the first quarter, according to the data released by the Office for National Statistics. 

GDP accelerated at an annual pace of 1% in the third quarter, following the rise of 0.7% in the second quarter and 0.3% in the first quarter, and expanded for the third quarter in a row. 

The pound dropped to a four-month low after the GDP contracted in September and anemic growth in the third quarter. 

 

Europe Indexes and Yields

The DAX index decreased by 0.1% to 19,252.48; the CAC-40 index eased by 0.1% to 7,304.66; and the FTSE 100 index rose by 0.1% to 8,075.84. 

The yield on 10-year German bonds edged lower to 2.33%, French bonds inched lower to 3.06%, the UK gilts edged lower to 4.48%, and Italian bonds decreased to 3.52%.

The euro edged lower to $1.05; the British pound inched down to $1.26; and the U.S. dollar strengthened to 88.79 Swiss cents.

Brent crude decreased $0.71 to $71.84 a barrel, and the Dutch TTF natural gas fell by €0.61 to €45.73 per MWh. 

 

Europe Stock Movers

Generali SpA increased 0.4% to €25.61 after the Italian insurance company reported better-than-expected nine-month profit, despite a €930 million charge linked to natural disasters. 

Aegon Ltd. increased 2% to €6.18 after the Dutch insurance company launched a stock buyback worth €150 million. 

ASML Holding NV declined 3.5% to €648.20 after the advanced chip equipment maker Applied Materials reported better-than-expected profit in its latest quarter but provided weaker-than-expected sales outlook in the current quarter. 

Evotec soared 17.8% to €10.18 after the German drug company received a non-biding €2 billion acquisition offer from Halozyme Therapeutics.