(CercleFinance.com) – The main European stock markets begin the week on a hesitant note (+0.3% in London, -0.1% in Frankfurt and Paris), against a backdrop of PMI indices giving mixed signals for main economies of the old continent.
Having recovered from 47.6 in December to 47.9 in January, the HCOB composite PMI of overall activity in the euro zone reached a six-month high, indicating the smallest contraction in private sector activity in the region since last July.
‘If the slight recovery in business prospects in January allows us to envisage, in the long term, an improvement in the economic situation, the continued drop in new business does not give much hope of an imminent recovery’, warn the investigators.
Regarding the United Kingdom, the services PMI index was revised to 54.3 for January, compared to 53.8 in the first estimate and 53.4 in December, reflecting the strongest growth in activity since May 2023.
In stock news, UniCredit soars by almost 10% in Milan, the bank having declared plans to redistribute 8.6 billion euros to its shareholders after achieving ‘record’ results for the 2023 financial year.
Nokia gains 1% on OMX, following a multi-year patent cross-licensing agreement with vivo, which will pay royalties to the Finnish network equipment maker, as well as catch-up payments to cover the litigation period.
Vodafone fell 1% in London, while the mobile operator reported organic growth of 4.2% in its third quarter sales, thanks to an acceleration in its activities in business services and in the ‘cloud’.
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