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European markets closed lower on Wednesday, losing momentum from earlier in the week. The pan-European benchmark Stoxx 600 index closed 0.43% lower, losing the morning's gains. Tech stocks held on to an increase of 1.3%, while financial services dropped 1.9%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 snapped a five-day winning streak, falling into the red at the very end of the session to close 0.06% lower. It was a similar picture stateside, with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average both lower while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed on earnings from companies including Tesla. Europe's markets had until now been buoyed by gains on Wall Street, where investors have been keeping a close eye on tech earnings along with mounting expectation that central banks in Europe will start cutting interest rates ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve. That has particularly benefited U.K. stocks, despite Bank of England Chief Economist Huw Pill pouring some cold water on the prospect of imminent cuts in a Tuesday speech. Japan's Nikkei 225 led gains in Asia as markets in the region rose across the board. Wed, Apr 24 202412:07 PM EDT European stocks closed lower Wednesday, with the regional Stoxx 600 index down 0.43%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 fell after a five-day winning run, ending 0.06% lower, while Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 were lower by 0.27% and 0.17%, respectively. Stoxx 600 index. — Jenni Reid Wed, Apr 24 202411:18 AM EDT UBS share price. UBS shareholders on Wednesday afternoon approved changes to the bank's Additional Tier 1 (AT1) bond system, protecting them from the kind of wipeout suffered by Credit Suisse AT1 bondholders last year as the bank collapsed. The change moves the AT1 bonds, a form of debt that can be converted when a bank's capital ratio falls below a certain level, to an equity conversion structure. UBS had sought to make the debt instruments, also known as contingent convertibles or "CoCos," more appealing in the wake of the Credit Suisse bondholder losses. The writedown was criticised by some. The Swiss bank faces greater capital requirements due to its increased size following its acquisition of former rival Credit Suisse, and as domestic regulators push to make those requirements even more stringent. UBS raised $3.5 billion in November from its first AT1 bond sale since the takeover. Shares of UBS were 2.8% lower at 4 p.m. in London at their lowest level since Feb. 29. In a separate development, U.S. hedge fund Appaloosa filed a lawsuit in a New Jersey court accusing the former Credit Suisse — now absorbed into UBS — of misleading investors before $17 billion of its bonds were written down, Reuters reported. The news was reported by Bloomberg overnight Tuesday. — Jenni Reid Wed, Apr 24 202410:52 AM EDT Dutch semiconductor supplier ASM International topped the Stoxx 600 index in afternoon trade, up 11.8% at 3:40 p.m. in London. In results published after the Tuesday close, the company reported higher revenue and net earnings, and raised its revenue forecast for the second quarter and the second half of 2024 as it said it expected a less extreme slowdown in China sales. At the other end of the Stoxx, German drug company Evotec plunged 34% following the publication of its full-year 2023 results which showed an operating loss of 47.5 million euros, compared to 20.9 million euros operating profit the year before. Evotec also announced the appointment of Christian Wojczewski as new chief executive officer from July, following the exit of longtime CEO Werner Lanthaler amid accusations of non-compliance with share trading disclosure rules. Interim CEO Mario Polywka said the company's 2024 aim was to "refocus... on profitable growth." — Jenni Reid Wed, Apr 24 20249:36 AM EDT A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Brendan Mcdermid | Reuters Technology stocks were higher shortly after the opening bell on Wednesday, helping lift the Nasdaq Composite for a third straight session. The tech-heavy index climbed 0.57%, while the S&P 500 added 0.2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was the lone laggard, slipping 62 points, or 0.16%. — Brian Evans Wed, Apr 24 20246:20 AM EDT UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti (R) speaks with UBS Chairman Colm Kelleher during a press conference in Zurich on March 29, 2023. Arnd Wiegmann | Afp | Getty Images UBS Group Chairman Colm Kelleher used the Swiss banking giant's Annual General Meeting on Wednesday to insist that the institution is "not too big to fail." Kelleher added that the bank was "seriously concerned" about Swiss government proposals for additional capital requirements on several systemically important banks, including UBS. He argued such proposals would curb Switzerland's competitiveness as a financial center and increase European regulatory fragmentation. "Trust cannot be regulated," he said in a speech. In a separate interview with CNBC, Johan Torgeby, chief executive of Swedish bank SEB, said he agreed with Kelleher's argument on regulation. "It is very clear that there is a worry overall about higher capital requirements," Torgeby told CNBC's "Street Signs Europe." "You can't regulate trust, and trust is a personal point, comes from asking shareholders to depart from their hard-earned money, putting [it] into a bank like SEB, and then we lever that up. Often this is not well-understood, that the real capital provider of anything a bank does is its shareholders, and we need to remain and regain any potential trust that has been destroyed there," he said. — Jenni Reid Wed, Apr 24 20246:08 AM EDT Shares of ASM International climbed 9.9% in morning trade after the Dutch semiconductor company raised its revenue forecast for the second quarter on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Handelsbanken shares were down 10.7% after the Swedish bank's first quarter earnings missed expectations. — Karen Gilchrist Wed, Apr 24 20243:43 AM EDT A June interest rate cut from the European Central Bank might not be followed by others, depending on how inflation develops, a policymaker said Wednesday. Joachim Nagel, president of Germany's Bundesbank, said that he would support a rate cut in June, if upcoming economic data increases the ECB's confidence that inflation would soon return back to the 2% target. "However, such a step would not necessarily be followed by a series of rate cuts," he said in a speech at the DZ Bank Capital Markets Conference 2024. "Given the current uncertainty, we cannot pre-commit to a particular rate path." Nagel also expressed caution about the outlook for inflation, saying that it looks persistent in the services sector, as it is driven by "continued strong wage growth." He also noted that core inflation remained high. "I am not fully convinced yet that inflation will actually return to target in a timely and sustained manner," he said. — Sophie Kiderlin Wed, Apr 24 20243:39 AM EDT A woman walks in front of the Gucci store on Fifth Avenue in Trump Tower on February 24, 2021 in New York City. John Smith | Corbis News | Getty Images Shares of French luxury group Kering sunk more than 9% at open on Wednesday, after the company warned that it expects a sharp downturn in first-half profits as a result of waning demand for its Gucci brand. The stock was trading down 8.9% by 8:15 a.m. London time. The group on Tuesday said that it anticipates a decline of 40% to 45% in first-half operating income, compared to the same period in 2023. — Karen Gilchrist Wed, Apr 24 20243:11 AM EDT European stocks opened slightly higher Wednesday, with the benchmark Stoxx 600 index up 0.1% by 8:10 a.m. London time. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 climbed 0.4% after recording another record close Tuesday, while France's CAC 40 was 0.1% lower, and Germany's DAX up 0.2%. Stoxx 600. — Karen Gilchrist Tue, Apr 23 20248:33 PM EDT The launch of Intel's latest artificial intelligence chip is expected to benefit three global semiconductor companies, according to Morgan Stanley. Intel unveiled its third-generation AI accelerator, Gaudi 3, earlier this month. The semiconductor giant said the latest chip is twice as power-efficient and can run AI models one-and-a-half times faster than Nvidia's H100 GPU - the flagship product from the current AI chip market leader. The three global semiconductor companies make various parts of the new AI chip for Intel. CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here. — Ganesh Rao Tue, Apr 23 20248:33 PM EDT Gold and copper have been on fire, as geopolitical tensions mount, central banks buy up gold, and AI demand for copper grows. Some fund managers and Wall Street analysts continue to be bullish on those commodities. Here are some names they like. CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here. — Weizhen Tan Tue, Apr 30 202411:45 PM EDT Only London's FTSE index is open today with the German DAX, French CAC and Italian FTSE MIB closed for the May Day/Labour Day holiday. The FTSE 100 index is expected to open 11 points lower at 8,132, according to data from IG. Earnings come from GSK, Next, Abrdn, Metro Bank, Aston Martin Lagonda and Domino's Pizza Group. — Holly EllyattEurope stocks close lower
UBS shareholders approve AT1 bond change, shares fall to two-month low
Stock Chart IconStock chart iconStocks on the move: ASM International up 12%, Evotec down 34%
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