Most European markets declined on Thursday morning, as investors mulled over mixed messages on the US-China trade deal front and negative economic data from the European Commission.
How did markets perform?
The Stoxx Europe 600 index SXXP, -0.08% decreased by 0.89% to 381.32 on Thursday, after having fluctuated on Wednesday.
In Germany, the DAX DAX, +0.15% also edged down by 0.10%, falling 9.83 points to 12,235.03 and Italy’s FTSE MIB I945, +0.28% decreased marginally at 0.4% to 21054.70. France’s CAC 40 PX1, -0.23% inched down by 0.02% to 5,474.87, it had increased 0.3% Wednesday.
The euro EURUSD, +0.0000% increased by 0.04% to $1.1376 and the Pound GBPUSD, +0.1655% rose by 0.021% to $1.2716.
The U.K.’s FTSE100 UKX, -0.31% inched up by 0.42%, rising to 7,386.39, having been flat on Wednesday.
What’s moving the markets?
U.S. President Donald Trump ruffled feathers as he left Washington, D.C. to attend the G-20 summit in Osaka, Japan. Having hinted at the possibility of reaching a trade deal with China, he also declared that he is not willing to give ground when he holds much anticipated talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping as they meet in Osaka. The U.S. president also threatened, should the talks fall through, that he was prepared to impose more tariffs.
The favorite in the race to become the next prime minister of the U.K., Boris Johnson, said late Wednesday night that the odds of a no-deal Brexit, which would see the country crash out of the EU without a withdrawal agreement, were “a million-to-one.” His comment has fueled uncertainty surrounding the fast approaching October 31 deadline, coming after he said on Tuesday that the U.K. will leave the EU “do or die.”
Meanwhile, the European Commission released data on Thursday showing that Eurozone economic sentiment dropped to its lowest point in nearly three years in June. The Commission pointed to a sharp decline in confidence in industry and highlighted a -2.9 decrease in economic sentiment in Germany and -1.5 in both Italy and the Netherlands.
Which stocks are active?
The multinational pharmaceutical company Bayer BAYER, +0.87% saw its share price increase by 8.11% to €60.24 after the group hired a lawyer and formed a supervisory board to address glyphosate litigation it has faced in the U.S.
Swedish fashion retailer H&M’s share price has also climbed by 9.24% to 158.56 Swedish kroner after it said the sales of its summer collections started well.
Vivendi, VIV, -2.98% the French mass media conglomerate, sank by 3.64% — or -0.90—to 23.57. The 6-month suspension the company’s planned sale of Universal Music Group, announced last week, has continued to plague their share price. The publication of an article in the New York Times that the French mass media conglomerate covered up the fire that damaged its Hollywood-based archive also impacted it.
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