European stocks muted at end of positive week; Munich Re disappoints

Investing.com - European stocks traded in a muted fashion Friday, consolidating at the end of a generally positive week that has included a deluge of quarterly corporate results as well as the imposition of the Trump administration’s tariffs. 

At 03:05 ET (07:05 GMT), the DAX index in Germany dropped 0.2%, while the CAC 40 in France gained 0.4% and the FTSE 100 in the U.K. rose 0.2%. 

The main European benchmarks are on course to record healthy gains this week, as the second-quarter earnings season has been generally supportive.

The DAX is on track for gains of over 3%, the CAC 40 is over 2% higher, while the FTSE 100 has underperformed, rising just 0.4%.

“Europe is now about 80% through its earnings season. While top-line sales numbers have been slightly underwhelming, earnings growth has been surprisingly strong. Companies across the region have delivered earnings growth of 10% - with a 14% upside surprise compared to expectations,” said Charles Stanley, in a note.

Munich Re cuts 2025 revenue forecast 

There are more earnings to digest Friday, although numbers from major companies are thinner on the ground.

Munich Re (ETR:MUVGn) cut its 2025 insurance revenue forecast, citing business trends and foreign exchange effects, while reporting weaker July renewals. The German reinsurer, however, maintained its full-year profit goal.

Dutch insurance company NN Group (AS:NN) reported a sharp fall in net profit in the first half of 2025, as losses on government bond sales, derivative revaluations, restructuring costs and the disposal of Turkish operations outweighed stronger operating results.

Swiss real estate company Mobimo (SIX:MOBN) reported a hefty rise in profit in the first half of 2025, lifted by strong property revaluation gains and higher income from development projects and trading property sales.

French games publisher Asmodee Group’s (ST:ASMDEEb) first-quarter net sales rose 32% from a year earlier, driven by a 49.9% increase in partner-published game sales.

Tariffs take effect

Elsewhere, the Trump administration’s tariffs took effect from Thursday, imposing import duties as high as 50% on regional economies.

Several countries have thrashed out trade deals with the U.S., including the European Union, reducing their tariff levels, but investors remained on edge over the economic impact of the duties.

As the effective date of recent U.S. trade duties arrived, Tokyo’s trade negotiator said the U.S. government on Thursday promised it would fine-tune some of its overlapping tariffs on Japanese goods to avoid the duties being paid on some products twice.

Away from trade, Moscow confirmed Russian President Vladimir Putin was scheduled to meet with U.S. counterpart Donald Trump within days, raising hopes that a ceasefire in the Ukraine war can be obtained. 

Crude set for hefty weekly losses

Oil prices fell Friday, on track for hefty weekly losses on concerns U.S. tariffs will hit global economic activity, reducing the demand for crude.

At 03:05 ET, Brent futures slipped 0.8% to $65.92 a barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 0.9% to $63.31 a barrel.

Both benchmarks were on track for weekly losses of between 4% and 5%, which would be their steepest weekly losses since late-June.

Higher U.S. tariffs against a host of trade partners went into effect on Thursday, and have raised concerns of a long-term hit to global demand. 

Oil prices were already reeling from the OPEC+ group’s decision last weekend to fully unwind its largest tranche of output cuts in September, months ahead of target.