European Stocks Recover From Early Weakness, Close Broadly Higher

(RTTNews) - Despite some early losses amid uncertainty about U.S. tariffs, European stocks staged a recovery and ended modestly higher on Thursday as investors focused on quarterly earnings and indulged in selective buying.

U.S. has signaled its willingness to reduce tariffs on China, but only through mutual agreement. China has denied any ongoing talks with Washington.

A day after Trump signaled a possible shift in his trade war with China, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in an interview with Fox News that there will be no unilateral reduction in tariffs on goods imported from China.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also clarified that such a move would not come unilaterally and there was no timeframe for engagement, casting doubt on a timely resolution to the trade war.

He also noted that there are multiple factors with regard to China beyond just tariffs and that a full rebalancing of trade might take two to three years.

The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.36%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 edged up 0.05%, Germany's DAX closed 0.47% higher, and France's CAC 40 ended 0.27% up. Switzerland's SMI settled with a gain of 0.92%.

Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Iceland, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Sweden and Turkiye closed higher.

Belgium, Czech Republic, Greece and Russia edged up marginally.

Finland, Ireland and Spain ended on a weak note, while Denmark and Norway closed slightly down.

In the UK market, Weir Group, Ashtead, Anglo American and Fresnillo gained 2.3 to 4.6%.

Intermediate Capital Group, Airtel Africa, Severn Trent, WPP, BP, JD Sports Fashion, Prudential, Associated British Foods, IMI, Scottish Mortgage, Convatec Group, Auto Trader Group and J Sainsbury closed higher by 1 to 2%.

Legal & General dropped nearly 6%. Bunzl, Hiscox, HSBC Holdings, B&M European Value Retail, Melrose Industries, Natwest Group, Barclays, Marks & Spencer, Lloyds Banking, Rentokil Initial and IAG closed down by 1 to 3%.

In the German market, Infineon rallied more than 7%. Adidas gained nearly 3% after delivering better-than-expected sales and profit for the first quarter. The sportswear maker reported that its preliminary operating profit for the first quarter of 2025 climbed to 610 million euros from last year's 336 million euros.

The company's gross margin improved to 52.1% compared to 51.2% last year. The year-over-year increase of the gross margin for the adidas brand was even stronger at 1.6 percentage points. Quarterly revenues grew to 6.153 billion euros from 5.458 billion euros in the prior year. In currency-neutral terms, sales increased 13%.

Puma, Adidas, Siemens, Siemens Energy, Continental, Porsche, Bayer, BMW, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Symrise and Vonovia gained 1.5 to 3%.

Commerzbank ended nearly 3% down. Brenntag, Munich RE and Hannover Rueck also ended notably lower.

In the French market, STMicroElectronics climbed about 6%. Renault rallied 4.4% after reaffirming its FY25 outlook. In the first-quarter, group revenues were 11.675 billion euros, down 0.3% from 11.707 billion euros last year. However, revenues grew 0.6% at constant exchange rates.

Stellantis, Air Liquide, Schneider Electric, L'Oceal, Legrand, Danone, Hermes International and Publicis Groupe gained 1 to 2.5%.

Dassault Systemes closed down more than 5%. Thales ended lower by about 3.7%.

BNP Paribas ended more than 2% down. The bank reported pre-tax income of 4.240 billion euros for the first quarter, 2.8% lower than 4.363 billion euros in the same quarter a year ago.

Operating income was 3.922 billion euros, 0.3% up from 3.901 billion euros last year, while non-operating items declined to 318 million euros from 462 million euros. Net income, group share decreased 4.9% to 2.951 billion euros from 3.103 billion euros a year ago, while revenue for the quarter grew 3.8% to 12.960 billion euros from 12.483 billion euros in the previous year.

Essilor, Eurofins Scientific, Airbus, Kering and Edenred also closed on weak note.

In economic news, a report from the Ifo Institute said that the Ifo Business Climate indicator for Germany edged higher to 86.9 in April from 86.7 in the previous month. April reading was the highest since July 2024. The business conditions index dropped to 86.9, while the current conditions index rose to 86.4 from 85.7 in the previous month.

However, the expectations index eased to 87.4 from 87.7, still above the consensus of 85, but reflecting higher uncertainty for companies as the risk of trade wars and protectionism triggered turbulence.

Monthly survey results from the statistical office INSEE said French consumer confidence remained unchanged in April, with the consumer sentiment index coming in at 92 in April. The score was forecast to fall to 91. Nonetheless, the score has remained below its long-term average of 100.

Major purchase intentions of households hit the highest since February 2022. The corresponding index rose to -23 from -26 in March.

The index measuring the current ability to save improved in April, while the one related to their future ability to save worsened as it fell three points to 12.

A report from the Confederation of British Industry showed business confidence in the United Kingdom increased to -33 points in the second quarter of 2025 from -47 points in the first quarter of 2025.

The Confederation of British Industry's monthly net balance of new orders came in at -26 in April 2025, the highest in five months, compared to -29 in March and forecasts of -35. Meanwhile, the export orders index plunged to -41 from -29.