EUROPEAN MARKETS CLOSE WEAK AS MIDDLE EAST WAR RAISES GROWTH CONCERNS

BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS, March 7 (Bernama-dpa-AFX) -- Despite opening on a steady note, the major European markets closed weak on Friday amid worries about the economic impact of the ongoing Middle East war, which entered its seventh day, dpa-AFX reported. 

The mood turned cautious around late morning and then stayed that way till the end of the day's session.

Markets opened higher amid signs of stabilisation in the oil market after the United States (US) gave India a waiver to buy Russian oil for 30 days as the Middle East conflict impacts global energy supply. The Trump administration's move on emergency measures, including state insurance guarantees for tankers and naval escort to counter rising energy prices, and reports that the White House was discussing the possibility of a large-scale release of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) in coordination with IEA partners aided sentiment at the start.

However, stocks turned direction around noon or a little past noon, as worries about the impact of the Middle East conflict rendered the mood cautious. Weak US jobs data also contributed to the change in mood.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 fell 1.02 per cent. The UK's FTSE 100 ended down by 1.24 per cent, Germany's DAX drifted down 0.94 per cent, and France's CAC 40 settled lower by 0.65 per cent. Switzerland's SMI lost 1.52 per cent. The FTSE 100, DAX, and CAC 40 shed about 5.5 per cent, 7.0 per cent, and 5.0 per cent, respectively, in the week.

Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Spain, Sweden, and Turkey closed with sharp to moderate losses today. Ireland and Portugal moved modestly higher, while Norway ended flat.

In the UK market, Kingfisher, Anglo American, Airtel Africa, Pershing Square Holdings, Marks & Spencer, Spirax Group, Antofagasta, Barclays, and Berkeley Group Holdings lost 3.0 to 5.1 per cent. Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, Prudential, Weir Group, Aviva, HSBC Holdings, Croda International, Glencore, Segro, British American Tobacco, Standard Chartered, Unilever, IAG, HSBC Holdings, Reckitt Benckiser, Natwest Group, Glencore, and Severn Trent also declined sharply. RightMove gained about 5.5 per cent and Autotrader Group climbed 4.7 per cent. BAE Systems, 3i Group, IMI, BP, Endeavour Mining, The Sage Group, and Babcock International gained 1.0 to 3.0 per cent.

In the German market, Infineon tumbled more than 7.0 per cent. Bayer, Heidelberg Materials, Qiagen, Deutsche Bank, Volkswagen, Continental, BASF, Siemens Energy, Merck, Brenntag, BMW, Henkel, Commerzbank, Porsche Automobil Holding, and Daimler Truck Holding lost 2.0 to 4.0 per cent. Rheinmetall moved up nearly 3.0 per cent and Scout24 gained about 2.7 per cent. SAP, Beiersdorf, Deutsche Boerse, and MTU Aero Engines posted modest gains.

In the French market, STMicroelectronics ended more than 6.5 per cent down. ArcelorMittal, Accor, Saint-Gobain, Edenred, Vinci, Air Liquide, and Societe Generale closed lower by 2.0 to 4.0 per cent. Sanofi, Stellantis, Schneider Electric, EssilorLuxottica, Credit Agricole, Michelin, LVMH, and BNP Paribas also ended notably lower. Thales gained nearly 2.0 per cent. TotalEnergies moved up 1.3 per cent, while Dassault Systemes and Safran ended modestly higher.

In economic news, data from Eurostat showed the number of employed persons in the eurozone rose by 0.2 per cent from the previous quarter to 172.6 million in the final quarter of 2025, confirming the preliminary estimate, and above the initial market expectations of a 0.1 per cent expansion. It was the bloc's 19th consecutive period of employment growth. The eurozone economy grew 1.2 per cent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2025, revised down from an initial estimate of 1.3 per cent. The figure marks the slowest annual growth in more than a year, easing from a 1.4 per cent expansion in the previous quarter.

UK house prices increased at the fastest pace in four months in February, suggesting the property market gained momentum at the start of the year. House prices registered an annual growth of 1.3 per cent in February, following a 1.1 per cent rise in January, according to data from the mortgage lender Halifax. This was the strongest growth in four months and exceeded economists' forecast of 0.9 per cent. The average property prices reached a new record high of £301,151 (US$403,117) in February. On a monthly basis, house prices increased 0.3 per cent in February, in line with expectations. This was the second consecutive increase but slower than the 0.8 per cent increase posted in January.

-- BERNAMA-dpa-AFX