European stock markets, Stoxx Europe 600, FTSE 100, CAC and DAX share price moves
Stoxx 600 pares gains as U.S.-China trade tensions resurface
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday said that China had “totally violated” a preliminary trade agreement with America, adding that the alleged wavering from the deal “has to be addressed.”
Under the agreement reached earlier this month, both countries said they would pause punitive tariffs on each other’s goods for 90 days.
After Trump made the accusation against Beijing, the pan-European Stoxx 600 pared the gains it notched earlier in the Friday session. It was last seen trading 0.4% higher.
U.S. inflation rate slipped to 2.1% in April, lower than expected, Fed’s preferred gauge shows
A person shops at a Dollar General store on May 28, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois.
Scott Olson | Getty Images
The personal consumption expenditures price index was expected to show a 2.2% annual rate in April, according to the Dow Jones consensus forecast.
The personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve’s key inflation measure, increased just 0.1% for the month, putting the annual inflation rate at 2.1%. The monthly reading was in line with the Dow Jones consensus forecast while the annual level was 0.1 percentage point lower.
Excluding food and energy, the core reading that tends to get even greater focus from Fed policymakers showed readings of 0.1% and 2.5%, against respective estimates of 0.1% and 2.6%.
Read the full story here.
— Jeff Cox
German inflation eases to hotter-than-expected 2.1% in May
Shoppers buy fresh vegetables, fruit, and herbs at an outdoor produce market under green-striped canopies in Regensburg, Upper Palatinate, Bavaria, Germany, on April 19, 2025.
Michael Nguyen/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Germany’s annual inflation hit 2.1% in May approaching the European Central Bank’s 2% target but coming in slightly hotter than analyst estimates, preliminary data from statistics office Destatis showed Friday.
The print compares with a 2.2% reading in April and with a Reuters projection of 2%.
The print is harmonized across the euro zone for comparability.
Germany’s consumer price index has been closing in on the European Central Bank’s 2% target over recent months, in a positive signal amid ongoing uncertainty about the economic outlook for Europe’s largest economy.
Read the full story here.
— Sophie Kiderlin
M&G’s stock jumps 5% after Japan deal
London-listed shares of investment manager M&G had popped 5.7% by 12:22 p.m. U.K. time on Friday.
The stock rose after the company announced an “ambitious long-term strategic partnership” with Japanese insurer Dai-ichi Life, under which the latter would acquire a 15% stake in M&G. The deal will also see M&G become Dai-ichi Life’s preferred asset management partner in Europe.
M&G said on Friday that over the next five years, the agreement is expected to generate at least $6 billion of new business flows for M&G, and $2 billion of new business flows for Dai-ichi Life.
— Chloe Taylor
Stocks on the move
It’s around halfway through the final trading session of the week, and the Stoxx 600 has gained 0.6%.
Oil and gas, healthcare and utilities stocks are leading gains, with the regional indexes representing those sectors each up by around 0.9%.
Looking at major regional bourses, Germany’s DAX is seeing the biggest upward swing, with a gain of 0.9%. That puts the index, which hit a record high earlier this week, on track to end its two-day losing streak.
Why Lagarde’s euro ambition could be a threat to King Dollar
The dollar is the world’s most commonly held reserve currency, accounting for almost 60% of global foreign exchange reserves and playing an important role in the trade of assets like oil and gold. It also acts as a peg for currencies including the Hong Kong dollar and the Saudi Riyal.
In second place, trailing far behind the greenback, is the euro, which makes up around 20% of international FX reserves.
This week, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said the shifting geopolitical landscape that was driving those moves gave European policymakers an opportunity to raise the euro’s status.
Read the full story here.
— Chloe Taylor
The threat of Trump’s Section 899 bill is ‘enough to spook the markets’, says Mizuho strategist
What happens if Section 899 in President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” becomes law?
Jordon Rochester, head of fixed income and currency strategy for Europe, the Middle East and Asia at Mizuho, says that foreign investors will likely move assets and investments out of the U.S.
Read more about Section 899 and why the U.S. foreign tax bill is sending jitters across Wall Street.
Court rulings on tariffs add ‘another layer of uncertainty,’ European commissioner for economy says
The latest court rulings on the legality of U.S. President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs add “another layer of uncertainty,” Valdis Dombrovskis, European Union commissioner for economy, told CNBC’s Karen Tso on Friday.
“We are already negotiating in [a] quite uncertain environment, with things changing quite rapidly,” he said.
On Wednesday the U.S. Court of International Trade had struck down the reciprocal tariffs the Trump administration had slapped on numerous countries in April. The administration appealed the motion and was granted its request to temporarily pause the ruling.
Dombrovskis reiterated that the EU was committed to agreeing to a negotiated deal with the U.S. “because EU-U.S. trade relationship is [the] largest in the world so there is lots at stake economically.”
He also described the tariff situation as “urgent,” citing a negative economic impact on the EU and the U.S.
— Sophie Kiderlin
European stock markets broadly rise
European stock markets broadly moved higher despite U.S. tariffs being re-imposed by U.S. courts.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index is up 0.1%, the FTSE 100 added 0.4% and Germany’s DAX is higher by 0.3%. Meanwhile, France’s CAC 40 bucked the trend by declining 0.2% in early trade.
— Ganesh Rao
Positive start for European stock markets
European stock markets are expected to open in positive territory on Friday.
Futures contracts for the Stoxx Europe 600 index point to a 0.1% gain at the open. Meanwhile, the U.K.’s FTSE 100, is set to open 0.2% higher, France’s CAC 40 could add 0.1% and Germany’s DAX is seen opening flat at the start of the trading day.
In Italy, shares of Metriks AI will trade for the first time on the stock exchange under the ticker MTK. The company provides artificial intelligence and analytical services and services to its clients.
— Ganesh Rao
