European stocks slip lower; French politics and U.K. growth in focus

Investing.com - European stocks slipped lower Thursday, continuing the choppy week as investors digested the French political unrest as well as U.K. growth data.

At 03:15 ET (07:15 GMT), the DAX index in Germany dropped 0.4%, the CAC 40 in France slipped 0.1% and the FTSE 100 in the U.K. fell 0.1%. 

It’s been a volatile week for European markets with bourses touching a two-week low on Tuesday, before trading higher on Wednesday.

French no confidence vote 

European stock markets received a boost in confidence on Wednesday after French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu promised to suspend a landmark pension reform until after the 2027 election, potentially kicking one of the country’s worst political crises in decades into the long grass.

This move would sacrifice one of President Emmanuel Macron’s most controversial moves to try and ensure the government’s survival. 

Lecornu faces no confidence votes in parliament Thursday, but now appears likely to survive.

France’s blue chip share index rose 2% on Wednesday, its best day since early May, helped by strong gains from luxury giant LVMH (EPA:LVMH).

U.K economy returned to growth 

Elsewhere, Britain’s economy returned to growth in August, as monthly gross domestic product expanded by a modest 0.1% from July, official data showed on Thursday.

Britain’s economy is on course to have the second-fastest growth among the Group of Seven nations after the United States, the International Monetary Fund said this week.

But at 1.3% its annual pace of expansion is not nothing to boast about, particularly with Chancellor Rachel Reeves expected to substantially increase taxation in next month’s budget.

Nordea Bank sees jump in Q3 net profit

In corporate news, Nordea Bank (CSE:NDADK) reported a hefty jump in net profit to €1.23 billion in the third quarter of 2025, as pre-provision profits and lower-than-expected impairments contributed to stronger returns for the Nordic lender.

Pernod Ricard (EPA:PERP) reported a 7.6%  decline in first-quarter organic sales, weaker than expected in key markets including the United States and China. 

Travis Perkins (LON:TPK), the U.K.’s largest building materials distributor, reported a return to growth in the third quarter as the company’s strategic focus on regaining market share in its Merchanting segment showed positive results.

Fastned (AS:FASTN) reported a sharp increase in charging revenue for the third quarter of 2025, with the growth was driven by a 32% increase in energy sales across 1.7 million charging sessions, all representing quarterly records for the European fast-charging company.

Crude gains on India supply talk

Oil prices surged higher Thursday on expectations of tighter global supplies after U.S. President Donald Trump stated that India agreed to stop buying oil from Russia. 

Brent futures gained 0.9% to $66.34 a barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 0.8% to $58.77 a barrel.

Trump told reporters on Wednesday he was “assured” by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the country will wind down its purchases of Russian oil “soon.” 

The prospect of India, one of the world’s biggest oil importers, seeking oil from alternative sources pointed to tighter supplies in the coming months.

Both benchmarks touched their lowest since early May in the previous session on U.S.-China trade tensions and after the International Energy Agency warned of a big surplus next year.