European stocks continued their upward trajectory for the sixth consecutive session on Wednesday. This came as investors assimilated various regional data and anticipated interest rate decisions from the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Bank of England.
In contrast, financial results from Microsoft, Alphabet, and Advanced Micro Devices somewhat tempered overall gains. The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose by 0.2 percent to 486.44, mirroring the previous day's increase.
Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 index were largely unmoved, while the UK’s FTSE 100 dipped slightly by about 0.1 percent.
Shares in Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk were up by 1.5 percent. This resulted from a forecast predicting another year of significant sales and operating profit increases, driven by the booming demand for their weight loss drug Wegovy and diabetes medication Ozempic.
Unfortunately, Swedish retailer H&M saw its shares plummet by almost 9 percent following the appointment of a new CEO and a failure to meet operating profit forecasts.
In banking, Spanish institution Banco Santander's shares increased by over 1 percent following a forecast of better profitability for the year ahead.
Despite a strong performance in 2023, British IT services provider FDM Group saw its shares decrease by nearly 2 percent. Similarly, pharmaceutical company GSK experienced a drop of over 1 percent, contrasting with its impressive 2023 performance and upgraded growth outlook.
Atoss Software, a German firm, saw its stock jump 4.5 percent after announcing a growth in profit and revenue for fiscal year 2023.
On the economic front, recent data revealed an unexpected 1.6 percent decrease in German retail sales in December. This bolstered predictions of a first quarter recession and increased speculation around a potential European Central Bank rate cut in April.
France's consumer price inflation increased by 3.1 percent year-on-year, a decline from December’s 3.7 percent rise and below economists' projections of a 3.4 percent rise. In the UK, house prices grew by 0.7 percent in January, surpassing an initial forecast of 0.1 percent growth.
