European Markets Close On Mixed Note

Market Overview - European stocks closed mixed, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 up by 0.07%, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 edged down by 0.01% and France's CAC 40 lost 0.28% [2] - Germany's DAX closed up by 0.51%, and Switzerland's SMI gained 0.31% [2] - Several European markets, including Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, and Russia ended weak, while Czech Republic, Finland, Iceland, Portugal, and Spain closed higher [2] Company Performance - In the UK market, bank stocks gained after the central bank announced that all seven largest lenders passed stress tests, reducing future Tier 1 capital requirements [3] - Notable gainers included Airtel Africa, Lloyds Banking Group, Vodafone Group, and Barclays, with increases ranging from 1% to 2.2% [3] - Endeavour Mining ended nearly 5% down, while Fresnillo, Berkeley Group Holdings, and WPP lost between 3% and 3.3% [4] - Bayer soared more than 11% after receiving support from the Trump administration regarding litigation over its Roundup pesticide [4] - Siemens Energy and Rheinmetall gained 3.3% and 3.1%, respectively, while Deutsche Bank climbed 2.2% [5] - In the French market, Societe Generale, BNP Paribas, and Credit Agricole gained between 1% and 2.3% [6] Economic Indicators - Euro area consumer price inflation rose to 2.2% in November, up from 2.1% in October, slightly above market expectations [7] - Germany's inflation rate accelerated to 2.6%, the highest since February, exceeding the ECB's 2% target [7] - The Euro Area unemployment rate was at 6.4% in October, matching September's revised reading [8] - France's central government budget deficit narrowed to EUR 136.2 billion at the end of October 2025, down from EUR 157.4 billion the previous year [8] - New car sales in France fell by 0.3% year-on-year to 132,927 units in November 2025 [9] - U.K. house prices grew by 1.8% on a yearly basis in November, slower than the 2.4% increase in October but faster than the forecast of 1.4% [10]