European stock markets displayed a neutral to slightly positive performance on Wednesday, as investors evaluated contrasting earnings results and awaited further U.S. data release this week to gain hints about potential interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
Recent data indicated that German wholesale prices sustained their downward trend in February. The wholesale prices registered a fall of 3.0 percent year-on-year, a sharper decline than the 2.7 percent observed in January.
In a separate release, data depicted the U.K. economy's slight growth in January, following a technical recession in the second half of previous year. A 0.2 percent expansion was recorded in January, bouncing back from a 0.1 percent contraction in December, primarily driven by service and construction output.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was slightly up at 506.97, after posting a 1 percent growth in the prior session. France's CAC 40 increased by 0.3 percent, and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 nudged upwards 0.1 percent. Germany's DAX, however, traded with a negative outlook.
Sandoz, the worldwide leader in generic and biosimilar drugs, saw its shares fall 1.6 percent after its core net income for fiscal year 2023 decreased to $953 million from $1.22 billion of the previous year.
On the positive side, shares of Spanish clothing company Inditex surged 4.4 percent following an increase in its pre-tax profit for the full year, chiefly fueled by sales growth. Advanced Medical Solutions shares rose 3 percent in London after announcing a proposed acquisition of Peters Surgical, a leading provider of specialty surgical sutures and internal cyanoacrylate devices.
In addition, the Allianz Technology Trust witnessed a 1 percent increase in share value subsequent to announcing turnaround financial results for fiscal 2023. Hochschild Mining shares fell nearly 4 percent following a net loss in FY23 while construction services company Balfour Beatty's shares leaped an impressive 8 percent on the news of share buyback.
Shares of German car manufacturer Volkswagen dipped 0.5 percent despite robust financial results for 2023 posted in a challenging environment. Sports apparel giant Adidas' shares fell 2.4 percent after it reported a yearly loss for 2023.
Online fashion retailer Zalando saw its shares skyrocket by more than 13 percent. Despite a decrease in annual sales, the company forecasted a return to growth in 2024. Europe's largest energy networks operator, E.ON, saw a 5.4 percent surge in its share prices after its profit guidance for 2024 surpassed expectations.
