European stocks wavered on Monday following underwhelming economic data from China.
In August, Chinese industrial production and retail sales grew less than anticipated, with home prices dropping at their fastest rate in nine years and unemployment rising. These factors heightened concerns over economic recovery, reinforcing the argument for further economic stimulus.
China’s central bank is expected to set its one-year loan prime rate and the five-year rate on Friday.
Investor attention also turned to several key central bank rate decisions scheduled for this week, including the Bank of England’s interest rate announcement on Thursday.
The pound reached its highest level in over a week, while gold prices remained near record levels as investors increased their expectations of a more aggressive rate cut from the Federal Reserve on Wednesday.
The pan-European STOXX 600 dipped slightly to 515.93 after rising 0.8 percent on Friday. The German DAX fell 0.3 percent, whereas France’s CAC 40 and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 saw modest gains.
In corporate news, Italian oil and gas giant Eni edged up 0.5 percent following reports of its plans to sell more shares in its renewables unit, Plenitude.
UniCredit advanced 1.6 percent after announcing it would commence repurchasing up to €1.7 billion ($1.89 billion) of its own stock.
However, British insurer Phoenix Group Holdings plunged 3.6 percent after abandoning the sale process of its SunLife business.
Playtech surged 8 percent after the gambling technology firm projected its 2024 adjusted core profit to slightly exceed market expectations.
French pharmaceutical company Ipsen SA rose 5.7 percent in Paris after discontinuing plans to commercialize a prostate cancer treatment due to a late-stage trial failing to meet main goals.
Electrical supplies distributor Rexel soared nearly 10 percent after rejecting an unsolicited preliminary bid from QXO, led by billionaire Brad Jacobs.
Vossloh AG shares increased by 2.7 percent. The German rail technology firm announced it had secured a contract worth over €100 million for a two-year term from DB InfraGO AG, a unit of Deutsche Bahn AG.
