European Equities Close Lower in Friday Trading; Eurozone Inflation Slows in October
European stock markets closed lower in Friday trading as the FTSE 100 in London was down 0.44%, Germany's DAX slid 0.68%, France's CAC 40 lost 0.44%, The Stoxx Europe 600 fell 0.51% and the Swiss Market Index dropped 0.61%.
Annual inflation in the eurozone eased to 2.1% in October from 2.2% in September, a Eurostat flash estimate showed.
In Germany, Europe's largest economy, more companies are reporting that it is "increasingly challenging" to project future development amid global tensions and policy ambiguity, the Ifo Institute said. A recent Ifo business survey found that 77.8% of companies reported it "difficult or fairly difficult" to forecast their business development in October, the second-highest level posted since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
And in corporate news, Novo Nordisk Chief Executive Maziar Mike Doustdar said that employees affected by layoffs "in the vast majority of our geographies" have been notified that they will lose their jobs. He said Novo Nordisk was "undergoing a company-wide transformation" that has eliminated "thousands of roles."
Shares of the Danish pharmaceutical giant fell more than 2% in Copenhagen.
Source : Mtnewswires.com
