Investment accounts
Adult accounts
Child accounts
Choosing Fidelity
Choosing Fidelity
Why invest with us Current offers Fees and charges Open an account Transfer investments
Financial advice & support
Fidelity’s Services
Fidelity’s Services
Financial advice Retirement Wealth Management Investor Centre (London) Bereavement
Guidance and tools
Guidance and tools
Choosing investments Choosing accounts ISA calculator Retirement calculators
Share dealing
Choose your shares
Tools and information
Tools and information
Share prices and markets Chart and compare shares Stock market news Shareholder perks
Pensions & retirement
Pensions, tax & tools
Saving for retirement
Approaching / In retirement
Approaching / In retirement
Speak to a specialist Creating a retirement plan Taking tax-free cash Pension drawdown Annuities Investing in retirement Investment Pathways
Europe close: Stocks edge up after May PMIs
(Sharecast News) - European stocks were mostly firmer on Thursday, buoyed by the latest reading on eurozone business activity and blowout earnings from US tech giant Nvidia. The benchmark Stoxx 600 index edged up 0.07% to 521.56 while Germany's DAX put on 0.06% to 18,691.32. Spain's Ibex 35 was the exception, dipping 0.16% to 11,311.10.
Semiconductor stock Infineon was ahead by 1% after Nvidia's first-quarter earnings beat expectations, with revenue up a whopping 262%.
Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell, said: "Expectations were high for Nvidia in the run-up to its latest results so to smash forecasts is a major achievement. That makes it six quarters in a row it has beaten the consensus earnings estimate and seven consecutive quarters for revenue. The chip giant is riding a gigantic wave that shows little sign of losing power.
Elsewhere, UK investment platform Hargreaves Lansdown surged 14% after confirming it had rejected a 985p per share takeover offer from a consortium comprising CVC, Nordic Capital and Platinum Ivy, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. It said the proposal "substantially undervalues" Hargreaves Lansdown and its future prospects.
Budget airline Wizz Air flew 11% higher after saying it swung to a profit of €365.9m in the year to the end of March from a loss of €531.1m the year earlier amid "sustained" demand.
On the macro front, the HCOB flash eurozone composite PMI output index rose to 52.3 (consensus: 42.0) for May from 51.7 in April, marking the third month in a row that business activity expanded.
The overall expansion was again driven by the services sector, where activity was up for the fourth month in a row, albeit at unchanged pace versus that seen in April.
Dr. Cyrus de la Rubia, chief economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank, said that the data looked as good as it could with the economy gaining strength and price pressures softening.
"This will be supportive for the apparent stance of the ECB to cut rates at the meeting on June 6. However, the better inflation outlook will be most probably not be enough for the central bank to announce that further rate cuts will follow suit."
Share this article
Related Sharecast Articles
Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.
Award-winning online share dealing
Search, compare and select from thousands of shares.
Expert insights into investing your money
Our team of experts explore the world of share dealing.
Policies and important information
Accessibility | Conflicts of interest statement | Consumer Duty Target Market | Consumer Duty Value Assessment Statement | Cookie policy | Diversity, Equity & Inclusion | Doing Business with Fidelity | Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Reports | Investing in Fidelity funds | Legal information | Modern slavery | Mutual respect policy | Privacy statement | Remuneration policy | Security | Statutory and Regulatory disclosures | Whistleblowing policy
Please remember that past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance, the performance of investments is not guaranteed, and the value of your investments can go down as well as up, so you may get back less than you invest. When investments have particular tax features, these will depend on your personal circumstances and tax rules may change in the future. This website does not contain any personal recommendations for a particular course of action, service or product. You should regularly review your investment objectives and choices and, if you are unsure whether an investment is suitable for you, you should contact an authorised financial adviser. Before opening an account, please read the ‘Doing Business with Fidelity’ document which incorporates our client terms. Prior to investing into a fund, please read the relevant key information document which contains important information about the fund.
This website is issued by Financial Administration Services Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) (FCA Register number 122169) and registered in England and Wales under company number 1629709 whose registered address is Beech Gate, Millfield Lane, Lower Kingswood, Tadworth, Surrey, KT20 6RP.