European stocks advanced Thursday as carmakers fuelled gains on the back of the news that US President Donald Trump is looking to reduce fuel economy standards aimed at making it easier for carmakers to sell fossil fuel cars.
Dublin
The Iseq All-Share index ended the session down 0.16 per cent to 12,746.24, giving up Wednesday’s gains and a bit more.
Cairn Homes was the biggest winner on the day, adding 1.81 per cent to hit €2.03. Glenveagh narrowly stayed in the green, up 0.1 per cent.
A number of major components trimmed recent gains, Ryanair backed off from its recent €28 highs, falling 0.18 per cent to €27.67. Kerry Group lost 1.33 per cent to €77.65 and Bank of Ireland dropped 0.03 per cent.
RM Block
Further share prices losses from insulation and building materials specialist, Kingspan Group, dragged the index into the red. It fell 0.54 per cent to €73.50.
London
The FTSE 100 index closed up 0.2 per cent at 9,710.87, despite downbeat construction data, amid growing conviction of a US interest rate cut next week.
Among the winners was London-based SSP, which operates Upper Crust. It leapt 11 per cent after reporting that trading had “gained momentum” in recent weeks and announced a “wide-ranging review” of its Continental European rail business.
The operator of food and beverage outlets in travel locations in 38 countries said it is also mulling options to “realise value” in recently-listed Indian investee Travel Food Services.
British luxury fashion house Burberry gained 3.01 per cent after an HSBC raised its target price on the luxury goods maker.
Trustpilot dropped 32 per cent, after a scathing report from short-seller Grizzly Research, which accused the Copenhagen-based consumer review platform of “mafia-style extortion campaigns against non-paying businesses”.
Citing its own investigation, Grizzly said that Trustpilot created “unsolicited review profiles for all kinds of businesses with the intention to attract hyper-negative reviews and force these businesses into paying subscription deals to ‘more actively manage’ the reviews.” Trustpilot called the claims “selective, misleading and framed to support a predetermined narrative”.
Also firmly in the red was Baltic Classifieds, down 14 per cent, after it warned that lower revenue growth and continued investment will depress margins in the short term.
Europe
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.5 per cent at the close. Auto stocks led gains with Mercedes-Benz closing up 4.8 per cent and Porsche adding 6.13 per cent. With BMW, up 4.49 per cent, the German auto stocks were among the beneficiaries of the news on fuel economy standards.
Industrials stocks also outperformed, with travel and leisure as well as healthcare shares among the laggards.
In company news, Schneider Electric gained 3.5 per cent and Siemens Energy rose 2.5 per cent after JPMorgan Chase analysts upgraded both firms, saying they remain bullish on the European capital-goods sector.
Royal Philips slumped 5.7 per cent, the biggest fall on the index in percentage point terms, after Citigroup analysts flagged tariff and China challenges for 2026.
The main regional index is within 1 per cent of a November record amid resilient earnings and economic growth.
New York
Wall Street’s major indices were mostly flat in the midafternoon, as investors reviewed fresh labour-market signals and firmed up their expectations for a possible Federal Reserve rate cut next week.
Investors were also treading carefully ahead of Friday’s September Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) report, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, which would be the first PCE readout since the recent US government shutdown.
Meta rose after a report said the tech giant planned to make cuts of up to 30 per cent to its Metaverse budget.
Amazon.com said it was in discussions with the US Postal Service about their future relationship and is considering its options before its contract expires next year. The ecommerce giant’s shares were down.
The consumer staples sector was pressured by a fall in Kroger shares. The supermarket chain narrowed its annual sales forecast and missed quarterly sales estimates. – Additional reporting, Reuters, PA.
