European Stocks Close Weak After Key U.S., European Economic Data

(RTTNews) - European stocks closed weak on Friday amid political uncertainty ahead of France's upcoming parliamentary elections. Investors also digested inflation data from France and U.K., and a report on U.S. personal consumption expenditure.

The pan European Stoxx 600 ended down by 0.23%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 drifted down 0.19% and France's CAC 40 lost 0.68%. Germany's DAX gained 0.14%, while Switzerland's SMI edged down 0.09%.

Among other markets in Europe, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal and Turkiye closed weak.

Austria, Greece, Poland and Sweden ended higher, while Russia and Spain closed flat.

In the UK market, JD Sports Fashion ended down by 5.5%, after the world's largest sportswear maker by revenue Nike warned sales would fall this year.

Marks & Spencer, Burberry Group, Lloyds Banking Group, WPP, Bunzl, Compass Group, Croda International, B&M European Value Retail, Reckitt Benckiser, RightMove, Haleon and Auto Trader Group lost 1.4 to 2.5%.

3i Group shares rallied about 2.3%. Airtel Africa, Beazley, EasyJet, Unite Group and Intertek gained 1 to 1.25%.

In the German market, Siemens Healthineers dropped nearly 3%. Puma ended lower by 2.5%, weighed down by Nike's warnings about a likely drop in sales.

RWE, Deutsche Boerse, Beiersdorf, Siemens Energy and E.ON lost 1 to 2%.

Zalando climbed about 2.7%. MTU Aero Engines gained nearly 2.5%. Daimler Truck Holding, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, SAP, Sartorius and Bayer gained 1 to 2%.

In the French market, L'Oreal and Teleperformance both ended down by about 3%. Edenred, Legrand, Airbus Group, Publicis Groupe, Hermes International, Credit Agricole, Pernod Ricard, Carrefour, Air Liquide, Capgemini and Societe Generale lost 1 to 2.3%.

STMicroElectronics, Renault, Dassault Systemes, ArcelorMittal, TotalEnergies and Bouygues posted sharp to moderate gains.

In economic news, the British economy recovered more than initially estimated in the first quarter, growing 0.7% from a quarter earlier, the latest data from the Office for National Statistics showed. In the initial estimate, the rate of expansion was 0.6%.

With this, the country has now come out of a technical recession as the GDP contracted in the previous two quarters.

On an annual basis, GDP advanced 0.3% in the March quarter, revised up from a 0.2% rise estimated initially.

Germany's import prices declined at the weakest pace in the current sequence of decreases, which started in March 2023. Import prices dropped 0.4% year-over-year in May, slower than the 1.7% fall in April.

France's consumer price inflation eased in June to the lowest level in nearly three years, while producer prices declined for the sixth straight month in May. The consumer price index climbed 2.1% year-over-year in June, following a 2.3% rise in the previous month.

Joblessness in Germany grew more than expected in June and the unemployment rate edged up, preliminary figures from the Federal Labor Agency showed. The seasonally adjusted unemployment grew by 19,000 persons in June following a 25,000 increase in May. Economists had forecast a rise of 15,000.

Data from the Commerce Department said the U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index came in unchanged in May after rising by 0.3% in April. The core PCE price index, which excludes food and energy prices, inched up by 0.1% in May after climbing by an upwardly revised 0.3% in April.

Economists had expected the core PCE price index to tick up by 0.1%, compared to the 0.2% increase originally reported for the previous month.

The Commerce Department also said the annual rates of growth by the PCE price index and the core PCE price index both slowed to 2.6% from 2.7% and 2.8%, respectively. The slowdowns also matched estimates.