In This Article:
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European market sentiment is being mostly driven by earnings.
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Metals prices are dragging on Basic Resources stocks as fears of a Chinese slowdown persist.
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Ryanair is to face its biggest-ever strike by cabin crew next week, with about 600 flights expected to be canceled.
European shares fell slightly on Thursday morning, as investors digested corporate results and cashed in recent gains in the stock market.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 was off by 0.14 percent as the end of the morning session in the U.K. approached, with the bulk of sectors in negative territory. Basic resources fell 1.5 percent, becoming the worst-performers in morning trade. Metals are in the firing line as worries about the Chinese economy persist.
Media stocks were also under pressure, down by more than 1 percent. This after French media conglomerate Publicis PUB-FR fell nearly 8 percent after it reported an expected drop in second-quarter sales.
Looking across the European benchmark, Iliad ILD-FR jumped nearly 8 percent Thursday morning following the news that the French telecoms operator had reached 1 million subscribers in Italy.
Shares in price comparison site Moneysupermarket.com also rose 8 percent after it stated it is confident it will meet its targets. At the other end of the index stood Dormakaba DOKA-CH . The Swiss security specialist was off by 15 percent after extending its forward guidance.
Another stock on the slide is U.K. retailer Sports Direct SPD-GB , which reported an £85 million hit to its full earnings thanks to its investment in the struggling department store chain Debenhams. Shares of Sports Direct were down almost 12 percent at one stage.
Unilever ULVR-GB shares were mostly flat after posting disappointing results .The consumer goods firm is blaming a price war, especially in the North American market.
In other corporate news, Ryanair RY4C-IE is to face its biggest-ever strike by cabin crew next week, with about 600 flights expected to be canceled as a result. Shares were sightly off in mid-morning deals.
New trade deal
Meanwhile, trade relations remain in the spotlight with White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow suggesting that the European Union will be offering a significant deal on trade with the U.S. soon.
Speaking to CNBC at a conference Wednesday, he said that European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, who is to visit Washington next week, will put on the table “an important free trade offer.” Separately, President Donald Trump also said Wednesday that the White House may prepare a trade deal with Mexico and Canada.