Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on May 7, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 24, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleEuropean shares fell as investors assessed earnings and U.S.-China trade talks. The Fed meeting is in focus with rate cuts expectations lowered.
(Reuters) -European shares slipped on Wednesday as investors assessed a spate of corporate earnings and the latest developments in the U.S.-China trade talk process ahead of the Federal Reserve's rate decision later in the day.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.4% as of 0715 GMT. Other regional indexes - France, Spain, and the UK fell between 0.2% and 0.5%, while Germany's DAX was flat.
European healthcare shares led sector losses with a 1.8% decline.
Meanwhile, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and chief trade negotiator Jamieson Greer will meet China's top economic official in Switzerland this weekend for talks that could be the first step toward resolving a trade war disrupting the global economy.
Also in focus is the U.S. Federal Reserve meet later in the day, with expectations for rate cuts being dialled down after relatively solid U.S. labour data last week.
Novo Nordisk rose nearly 1% after the anti-obesity drugmaker posted first-quarter operating profit above analyst forecasts. However, it cut its full-year sales and profit outlook amid lacklustre U.S. prescription data.
Ambu fell 10.5%, after the Danish medical equipment maker reported second-quarter sales and earnings below expectations.
Swedish builder Skanska posted first-quarter earnings below market estimates, sending shares down 2.6%.
(Reporting by Sukriti Gupta; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)
The article discusses the decline in European shares as investors focus on corporate earnings and the upcoming Federal Reserve meeting.
Corporate earnings, U.S.-China trade talks, and the Federal Reserve's rate decision are key factors.
Novo Nordisk rose nearly 1% while Ambu fell 10.5% due to earnings reports.
Explore more articles in the Finance category
