European stocks slipped lower Thursday, trading in a subdued fashion following losses on Wall Street, with investors awaiting the release of key economic data which could influence the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy outlook.
At 03:10 ET (07:10 GMT), the DAX index in Germany dropped 0.6%, the CAC 40 in France slipped 0.7% and the FTSE 100 in the U.K. rose 0.5%.
U.S. jobless data due The main Wall Street indices closed lower for a second straight session on Wednesday, with technology stocks leading the decline amid concerns over stretched valuations and uncertainty about the Federal Reserve’s next moves.
This followed a speech by Jerome Powell, during which the Fed chair flagged increasing economic risks and uncertainty over interest rates.
With this in mind, investors will carefully study the release of weekly jobless claims data later in the session, given the worries of Fed policymakers about a weakening labor market and rising layoffs.
A final reading of second-quarter U.S. gross domestic product is also due later Thursday, followed by the Fed’s preferred inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures price index, on Friday.
These readings are expected to provide clearer signals on whether the central bank will move ahead with further rate cuts this year, after cutting earlier this month for the first time this year.
Regional confidence reports Back in Europe, investors will be monitoring French and German consumer confidence reports, along with the latest monetary policy update from the Swiss National Bank. The SNB is widely expected to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 0%, as the central bank attempts to guide the Swiss economy through the shock of being hit with a 39% tariff rate on goods it sends to the U.S. over the summer.
H&M reports rise in Q3 operating profit In the corporate sector, Hennes & Mauritz (ST:HMb) reported a bigger-than-expected rise in third-quarter operating profit, but the Swedish fashion retailer warned that it expects the cost of U.S. tariffs on imports to have a bigger impact on gross margin in its fourth quarter which runs to end-November.
German shoe manufacturer Birkenstock (NYSE:BIRK) said it expects fiscal 2025 revenue of at least €2.09 billion, topping its earlier guidance. The company also pre-announced fourth-quarter sales of at least €520 million, up 14% on a reported basis and 18% in constant currency.
Data from the European auto lobby ACEA showed that Stellantis (NYSE:STLA) returned to sales growth in Europe for the first time in over a year as the overall market expanded with a boost from plug-in hybrid and battery-electric sales.
Additionally, Chinese EV maker BYD sold three times as many new cars in the European Union last month than in August 2024, surpassing U.S. competitor Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) for the second consecutive month.
Crude retreats from highs Oil prices fell Thursday, retreating from the prior session’s seven-week high amid uncertainty around the supply-demand outlook.
