MARKETS EUROPE/Lighter – Insurance stocks under pressure according to Scor figures

DOW JONES–The European stock markets have said goodbye to an eventful week with losses. After interest rate cut hopes in the USA had slightly dampened sentiment during the week, weak economic data from China at the end of the month did nothing to lift the mood. Some market participants are likely to have positioned themselves cautiously before the weekend.

The DAX lost 0.7 percent to 23,958 points and slipped below the 24,000 mark for the first time in almost two weeks. The Euro-Stoxx-50 fell by 0.7 percent to 5,662 points. In late trading, the mood was also weighed down somewhat by the fact that the US stock markets only rose slightly and came back from early highs despite strong quarterly figures from Amazon and Apple.

The day after the key interest rates were confirmed by the ECB, prices and yields on the bond market went sideways with small fluctuations. New October price data from the Eurozone hardly provided any impetus. EU inflation was reported exactly as expected at 2.1 percent, slightly lower than the previous month and just above the ECB’s target of 2.0 percent. Core inflation remained at 2.4 percent. The price data showed that the ECB was well positioned, it was said in trading.

On the foreign exchange market, the dollar’s recovery continued after the latest US interest rate signal, with the euro returning to $1.1528.

Quarterly figures move prices

When it comes to individual stocks on the stock market, company figures rose again, even if the flood of numbers subsided at the end of the week.

In Paris, Saint-Gobain lost 3.5 percent according to the figures. The construction company’s sales were slightly lower than in the previous year due to weak North American business.

The French Scor caused weak prices in the insurance sector across Europe, with its price falling by almost 13 percent. The Stoxx sub-index of insurers was the day’s bottom with a loss of 1.9 percent. It was criticized that the Scor profit in the quarter primarily benefited from the fact that there were fewer natural disasters. This is also likely to have unsettled some investors given the current devastation caused by Hurricane Melissa in the Caribbean. In the DAX, Allianz lost 2.2 percent, Hannover Re and Munich Re each lost 2.0 percent. In the MDAX, Talanx fell by 2.0 percent. In Zurich, Swiss Re fell by 1.9 percent and Zurich Insurance fell by 1.7 percent.

In Vienna, Erste Group Bank’s share price shot up by 5.5 percent after the bank not only presented better-than-expected figures for the third quarter, but also raised its forecast.

In the DAX, Bayer shares rose by 0.3 percent. It had suddenly come under pressure in late trading the day before and had lost 2.5 percent. Market participants suspected that this was due to a court ruling in the USA that went against Bayer. Bayer itself reported this shortly after trading ended on Thursday. A U.S. appeals court has reversed a trial court decision acquitting Bayer of compensatory and punitive damages totaling $185 million.

Thanks to slightly better developments in Asia and America, the lubricant manufacturer Fuchs surprisingly earned more than analysts expected in the third quarter with almost stable sales. The share price rose by 1.2 percent.

Kion, which had reacted cautiously positively to the annual report the day before, grew strongly by 6.9 percent. There were positive analyst comments for the forklift truck manufacturer and warehouse automation provider. LBBW increased its recommendation to buy and spoke of a solid quarter. The sales markets are recovering and restructuring is making progress. Higher price targets for Kion came from Deutsche Bank and UBS.

Index closing development in % Since the beginning of the year*

Euro Stoxx 50 5,662.04 -0.7% +16.4%

Stoxx-50 4,754.45 -0.6% +11.0%

Stoxx-600 571.89 -0.5% +13.2%

XETRA DAX 23,958.30 -0.7% +21.1%

FTSE-100 London 9,760.06 n/a +17.4%

CAC-40 Paris 8,121.07 -0.4% +10.5%

AEX Amsterdam 971.46 -1.0% +11.7%

ATHEX-20 Athens 5,029.87 -0.5% +41.7%

BEL-20 Brussels 4,902.37 -0.8% +15.9%

BUX Budapest 107,319.91 +0.3% +34.9%

OMXH-25 Helsinki 5,480.84 -0.8% +28.1%

ISE NAT. 30 Istanbul 10,971.52 n/a +10.2%

OMXC-20 Copenhagen 1,508.30 -0.9% -27.6%

PSI 20 Lisbon 8,426.96 -0.2% +32.4%

IBEX-35 Madrid 16,032.60 -0.0% +38.3%

FTSE-MIB Milan 43,175.32 -0.1% +26.4%

OBX Oslo 1,525.59 +0.4% +14.3%

PX Prague 2,396.59 +0.9% +35.0%

OMXS-30 Stockholm 2,767.07 -0.6% +12.1%

TIG-20 Warsaw 2,987.33 -1.4% +38.2%

ATX Vienna 4,808.16 +1.3% +29.6%

SMI Zurich 12,234.50 -0.6% +6.1%

*based on previous day’s close

FOREX last +/- % 0:00 Thu, 18:10 % YTD

EUR/USD 1.1523 -0.4% 1.1568 1.1565 +11.7%

EUR/JPY 177.65 -0.4% 178.28 178.21 +9.5%

EUR/CHF 0.9266 -0.1% 0.9274 0.9274 -1.2%

EUR/GBP 0.8780 -0.2% 0.8795 0.8796 +6.3%

USD/JPY 154.16 +0.0% 154.10 154.09 -2.0%

GBP/USD 1.3124 -0.2% 1.3153 1.3148 +5.1%

USD/CNY 7.1060 +0.2% 7.0935 7.0955 -1.6%

USD/CNH 7.1247 +0.2% 7.1111 7.1137 -3.1%

AUS/USD 0.6534 -0.3% 0.6552 0.6551 +5.9%

Bitcoin/USD 108,730.05 +0.8% 107,884.75 107,668.30 +13.7%

CRUDE OIL most recently VT-Settlem. +/-% +/- USD% YTD

WTI/Nymex 60.85 60.57 +0.5% 0.28 -16.3%

Brent/ICE 65.05 65.00 +0.1% 0.05 -14.5%

METALS last day previous +/- % +/- USD % YTD

Gold 3,984.62 4,038.08 -1.3% -53.46 +53.2%

Silver 48.55 49.02 -1.0% -0.47 +69.4%

Platinum 1,367.85 1,392.94 -1.8% -25.09 +59.0%

Copper 5.11 5.10 +0.1% 0.01 +24.3%

YTD based on the previous day’s closing level

(Information provided without guarantee)

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 31, 2025 1:33 p.m. ET (17:33 GMT)