BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - European stocks are turning in a mixed performance on Wednesday as political uncertainty in France, and a lack of any significant positive triggers render the mood cautious. Investors are also awaiting earnings updates from AI major NVIDIA.
French Prime Minister François Bayrou urged lawmakers on Tuesday to choose between 'chaos' and 'responsibility,' when the confidence vote takes place on September 8.
A survey showing weak German consumer confidence is also weighing on sentiment. German consumer confidence is set to continue to fall in September as rising fear of job losses weighed on purchase decisions and damped hopes of robust economic recovery, a closely watched survey showed.
Germany's DAX was down 0.15%, and France's CAC 40 was up nearly 0.5%, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was roughly flat. The pan European Stoxx 600 was up 0.16%.
Bank stocks are among the notable losers in the UK market. Natwest Group, Barclays and Standard Chartered are down 2.5%, 1.45% and 1.3%, respectively.
Endeavour Mining, Bunzl, Associated British Foods, Prudential and Sainsbury (J) are among the other notable losers.
JD Sports Fashion is up nearly 1.5% after the company's board announced a share buyback programme of 100 million pounds.
JD Sports Fashion reported that its second quarter Group like-for-like sales were down 3.0%. On an organic basis, sales were up 2.2%. For the 26 weeks to 2 August, like-for-like sales were down 2.5%.
Pershing Square Holdings, National Grid, Airtel Africa, Severn Trent, Vodafone Group, Intercontinental Hotels Group, SSE, Pearson, Haleon and Games Workshop are gaining 1 to 1.5%.
In Germany, Commerzbank is down 3.2%, dropping for a second straight session. Deutsche Bank is down 2.3%. Zalando, BASF and Siemens Energy are down 1.4 to 1.7%.
Porsche is gaining more than 1%. Covestro, RWE, SAP, Bayer, Vonovia, Munich RE, Deutsche Telekom and E.ON are up with modest gains.
In the French market, Carrefour is down 2.2%. ArcelorMittal, Unibail Rodamco and Edenred are lower by 1.1 to 1.4%. Stellantis, Veolia Environment, Credit Agricole, Eurofins Scientific and BNP Paribas are also weak.
LVMH is rising 1.8%. AXA, Thales, Hermes International, Vivendi, Bouygues, TotalEnergies, Air Liquide, Dassault Systemes, Kering and Vinci are gaining 1 to 1.3%.
The forward-looking GfK consumer sentiment index fell to -23.6 in September from -21.7 in the previous month. The reading was forecast to drop moderately to -22.
'With the third consecutive decline, consumer sentiment is now definitely in the summer slump,' NIM Head of Consumer Climate Rolf Burkl said.
'Growing fear of job losses is causing many consumers to remain cautious about making major purchases,' said Burkl. 'This further dampens hopes for a robust recovery in consumer sentiment before the end of the year,' added Burkl.
After rising for five consecutive months, income prospects of consumers suffered a severe setback in August largely due to fear of job losses. The corresponding index dropped 11.1 points to 4.1, the lowest since last March.
Moreover, ongoing uncertainty about consumer prices also weighed on sentiment. The geopolitical situation and the US government's tariff policy are raising concerns that energy prices could increase again.
Economic expectations deteriorated significantly for the second straight month in August. The indicator posted -7.4, the lowest in six months.
The Confederation of British Industry's retail sales gauge for the UK increased slightly to -32 in August 2025 from -34 in July, better than market expectations of -33. The latest reading indicated that retail sales volumes declined for the 11th consecutive month. Looking ahead, the outlook for September brightened to -16.
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