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European stocks ended weak on Friday as disappointing earnings update from Amazon and fresh losses in Chinese markets<\/span> amid concerns about China’s policy risks outwieghed data showing a fairly strong rebound in euro area economic growth in the second quarter.<\/p>\n Concerns about the spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus<\/span> in several places across Europe weighed as well.<\/p>\n The pan European Stoxx 600 drifted down 0.45%. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 declined 0.65%, Germany’s DAX slid 0.61% and France’s CAC 40 ended 0.32% down. Switzerland’s SMI gained 0.25%.<\/p>\n Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain and Sweden ended weak.<\/p>\n Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Iceland and Turkey closed higher.<\/p>\n In the UK market, Intertek tumbled 8% despite the assurance and product testing group reporting a rise in first-half profits.<\/p>\n IAG declined 7.4% after it plunged to a \u20ac2bn (\u00a31.7bn) half year loss. Intermediate Capital Group, Weir Group, Informa, Whitbread, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Melrose Industries, BP, Evraz and Compass Group lost 2 to 4%.<\/p>\n Mining stocks Anglo American, Rio Tinto, Antofagasta, BHP Group and Glencore declined amid rising concerns about harsh regulation on a range of private companies in China.<\/p>\n NatWest Group ended more than 1% down despite the bank returning to profit and announcing plans for a fresh round of dividends and share buybacks.<\/p>\n Pearson moved up more than 3% as the company raised its interim dividend after reporting improved sales across all arms of its business<\/span> in its latest half-year.<\/p>\n Rightmove, Segro, Croda International, Avast, Sage Group, United Utilities, Just Eat Takeaway, Unilever, Auto Trader Group and BT Group ended notably higher.<\/p>\n In the French market, Unibail Rodamco, Air France-KLM, Carrefour, Engie, Technip, Thales and Safran lost 2 to 4%. <\/p>\n Renault declined nearly 3% after the company said the supply chain issue and rising raw material prices could curb further recovery in profitability this year.<\/p>\n Atos, Credit Agricole, WorldLine, STMicroElectronics and Sodexo also closed notably lower.<\/p>\n BNP Paribas shares declined despite the lender reporting a 26% rise in net income in the second quarter and announcing an additional dividend.<\/p>\n Essilor surged up nearly 4% after raising its full-year guidance. Saint Gobain gained 3.2%, while Legrand, Schneider Electric and Danone climbed 2 to 2.25%.<\/p>\n In Germany, Fresenius Medical Care declined more than 3% despite posting better-than-expected second quarter results and raising its 2021 earnings guidance. Fresenius and Lufthansa also lost more than 3%. <\/p>\n Thyssenkrupp, Infineon Technologies, Deutsche Post, Bayer, Daimler and Deutsche Bank shed 1 to 2.3%. Linde shares gained nearly 3%.<\/p>\n The preliminary flash estimate published by Eurostat showed eurozone gross domestic product expanded 2% sequentially in the second quarter, reversing the 0.3% drop posted in the preceding period. The growth rate was bigger than the expected 1.5%.<\/p>\n On a yearly basis, GDP rebounded 13.7% after shrinking 1.3% in the first quarter. GDP was forecast to grow 13.2%.<\/p>\n Eurozone inflation accelerated more-than-expected in July, rising 2.2% in the month from 1.9% in June, flash data from Eurostat showed.<\/p>\n Another preliminary report from Eurostat showed euro area unemployment rate dropped to 7.7% in June (the lowest level in over a year), falling for a second month in a row, after coming in at 8% in May. The rate was expected to remain unchanged at May’s original 7.9%.<\/p>\n The French economy<\/span> rebounded at a faster-than-expected pace in the second quarter, underpinned by household spending and investment, flash data from the statistical office Insee revealed. Gross domestic product rebounded 0.9% in the second quarter, after being flat in the first quarter. Economists had forecast a quarterly growth of 0.8%.<\/p>\n In the second quarter, GDP was 3.3% below the level of the fourth quarter of 2019, as compared to 4.2% in the two previous quarters, the statistical office said.<\/p>\n France consumer price inflation slowed 1.2% in July from 1.5% in the previous month, provisional data from the statistical office Insee showed on Friday. Economists had expected inflation to come in at 1%. On a monthly basis, consumer prices edged up 0.1 percent, the same as in June. Prices were forecast to fall 0.1 percent.<\/p>\n Germany’s gross domestic product grew 1.5% from the first quarter, when it was down 2.1%, data from Destatis showed. Nonetheless, the second quarter growth was slower than the expected expansion of 2%.<\/p>\n On a yearly basis, GDP grew by calendar-adjusted 9.2%, in contrast to the 3.1% drop posted in the first quarter. GDP was forecast to climb 9.6%. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n