European equities declined as disappointing results from major companies such as Hermes and resurgent worries about artificial intelligence weighed on sentiment.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed down 1%, with mining and banking shares leading the losses while the food and beverage sector gained. The European banks index finished at its lowest level since early June.
Hermes fell after its Asia-Pacific sales performance disappointed. Technology stocks also declined along with the broader market, and a basket of European AI "winners" compiled by UBS dropped 6.1%.
In index point terms, ASML became the biggest drag on the index as investors focused on the sustainability of AI infrastructure spending. As AI sentiment deteriorated, Siemens Energy fell 8.6%, while Nokia dropped 9.7% following a mixed earnings report.
European stocks have stalled in recent weeks and are down 3.3% from their August high. Concerns about the AI trade, a selloff in the French bond market, and persistently elevated oil prices have all weighed on the market. After a deadly attack in Saudi Arabia, supply concerns intensified and Brent crude rose above $111 per barrel.
Guillermo Hernandez Sampere, head of trading at MPPM, said: "This round of corporate earnings could potentially push the market out of its current trading range, provided that risks within the eurozone can be kept under control."
Among other individual stocks, Nestle rose 1.1% after reporting strong third-quarter sales growth. Reports said CVC is exploring a takeover offer to take Verisure Plc private, driving Verisure shares up 10%. Spanish bank Bankinter SA fell 7.6% after releasing its third-quarter results.
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