(Bloomberg) -- European stocks slipped, dragged by weak earnings, as traders gear up for a big week of central-bank decisions.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index closed 0.2% lower in London, having earlier gained as much as 0.6%. European real estate and health-care sectors gained the most, while autos and travel stocks posted the biggest declines.
Among individual stocks, Royal Philips NV surged as much as 15% after the Dutch medical-equipment maker’s order intake rose for the first time in two years and issues related to its faulty sleep apnea machines receded. Beermaker Heineken NV sank as much as 10% as it took a €874 million one-time impairment to account for the lower valuation of its stake in China’s largest brewer.
China worries keep weighing on European companies’ earnings, according to Janet Mui, head of market analysis at RBC Brewin Dolphin. “Particularly disappointing after the third plenum failed to impress investors with stimulus and action plans,” she added.
Last week marked the busiest period for second-quarter earnings reports. Focus this week turns to big technology companies in the US, with Apple Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. set to report. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index has fallen three weeks in a row amid an underwhelming start to the reporting season.
Investors began the week desperate for answers about the near-term path for global monetary policy after conflicting signals from key economies upended markets. Central banks are set to meet in Tokyo and Washington on Wednesday and London on Thursday.
Florian Ielpo, the head of macro research at Lombard Odier Asset Management, said that lingering risks “could make of this hot week a difficult sail.”
Traders also will be looking ahead to a report on Wednesday that will probably show euro-area inflation at 2.5% for a second month, according to the median forecast of 36 economists in a Bloomberg survey. That’s part of a barrage of reports this week that will deliver crucial information for the European Central Bank as officials look for signals on whether to resume interest-rate cuts in September.
For more on equity markets:
- DAX Rally in Doubt as China’s Growth Prospects Dim: Taking Stock
- M&A Watch Asia: CNBM, AirTrunk, Mankind Pharma, Ultratech Cement
- US Stock Futures Little Changed
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--With assistance from Rheaa Rao.
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