This is CNBC’s live blog covering European markets.
European stock markets open lower
European stock markets have opened sharply lower, with the Stoxx 600 index falling 0.42% and almost all sectors in the red led by travel, down 1.5%.
Global sentiment has not been improved by the latest updates on U.S. tariffs, with high duties that Washington has imposed on China expected to remain in force and with negotiations with key U.S. trading partners looking set to rumble on beyond the initial July 9 deadline.
The U.K.’s FTSE 100 initially dipped after closing at a record high on Wednesday, but was last fractionally above the flatline after figures showed the British economy contracted 0.3% in April as exports to the U.S. dropped by the most on record.
— Jenni Reid
UK exports to the U.S. plunge by record amount as tariffs bite
U.K. goods exports to the U.S. dropped £2 billion ($2.71 billion) in April, according to the Office for National Statistics, the biggest monthly drop since records began in 1997.
The value of exports was the lowest since February 2022, with the ONS saying the shift was “likely linked to the implementation of tariffs on goods imported to the United States.”
U.S. imports to the U.K. fell by £400 million for the month.
The U.K. and U.S. announced the outline of a trade deal at the start of May, but the agreement still imposed 10% blanket tariffs on British goods sent stateside and has not yet been fully implemented, leaving 25% duties on steel, aluminum and autos.
Overall, the U.K.’s trade deficit in goods rose by £4.4 billion to £60 billion in the three months to April, as its trade surplus in services dipped by £500 million to £48.5 billion.
— Jenni Reid
GDP data ‘clearly disappointing,’ Finance Minister Reeves says
Rachel Reeves, UK Finance Minister, speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box outside the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Jan. 22, 2025.
U.K. Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the latest monthly GDP print was “clearly disappointing” after data showed the economy shrank 0.3% contraction in April, on a monthly basis.
“Our number one mission is delivering growth to put more money in people’s pockets through our Plan for Change, and while these numbers are clearly disappointing, I’m determined to deliver on that mission,” she said in a statement out Thursday.
Reeves said the spending review she delivered to lawmakers on Wednesday, in which she laid out expenditure and investment plans for all government departments for the next few years, showed the Treasury was ambitious to deliver jobs and growth.
“Whether that’s improving city region transport, a record investment in affordable homes or funding Sizewell C nuclear power station. We’re investing in Britain’s renewal to make working people better off,” she commented Thursday.
— Holly Ellyatt
UK economy dips to cooler-than-expected 0.3% in April
The White Lion pub seen at Covent Garden, UK.
The U.K. economy contracted by 0.3% in April, the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed Thursday.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected a 0.1% contraction. The economy had grown 0.2% in March, following growth of 0.5% in February.
The April economic output was weighed on by a contraction in the services and production sectors.
— Holly Ellyatt
Tariffs are now the biggest macroeconomic concern for two in three investors
Mounting trade tensions and tariffs have become the single biggest worry for global investors, overshadowing all other economic risks, a new survey shows.
Nearly two-thirds (63%) of institutional investors and wealth managers identified trade levies as the most significant macroeconomic concern impacting their strategy, according to a survey published by British investment manager Schroders.
Read the rest of Ganesh Rao’s story here.
Global market confidence in U.S.-China trade talks progress falters
Traders work at the New York Stock Exchange on June 11, 2025.
Global market confidence in the apparent progress of trade talks between the U.S. and China appears to have faltered somewhat overnight, with Asia-Pacific markets trading in mixed territory and U.S. stock futures lower as investors assessed President Donald Trump’s declaration that a trade deal with China was “done.”
Trump said in a post on Truth Social earlier Wednesday that “WE ARE GETTING A TOTAL OF 55% TARIFFS, CHINA IS GETTING 10%.” However, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick later said that U.S. levies on goods from China won’t change from their current levels.
The deal still needs to be officially approved by Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
— Holly Ellyatt
What to keep an eye on today
CNBC’s coverage of the VivaTech summit in Paris continues on Thursday. We’ll be reporting from Goldman Sachs’ annual European Financials Conference in Berlin too.
Shoppers queue to pay for their shopping in the Tesco Extra superstore on April 20, 2009 in New Malden, Surrey, England.
On the data front, the U.K.’s monthly gross domestic product print is due Thursday morning, and earnings are set to come from retail giant Tesco.
— Holly Ellyatt
Here are the opening calls
Welcome to CNBC’s live blog covering European financial market action and the latest regional and global business news, data and earnings.
Futures data from IG suggests London’s FTSE will open 33 points lower at 8,838, Germany’s DAX down 189 points at 23,783, France’s CAC 40 down 44 points at 7,732 and Italy’s FTSE MIB 282 points lower at 39,858.
— Holly Ellyatt
