Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 10th October 2025

ASIA

APAC stocks were mostly lower following the negative handover from Wall Street, where the stock market and gold prices pulled back from record levels, while the KOSPI outperformed against its regional counterparts on return from its extended holiday. ASX 200 lacked direction amid quiet catalysts and as weakness in the mining and materials sectors offset the strength in tech and financials. Nikkei 225 retreated following the firmer-than-expected PPI data, although participants also digested earnings updates, including from index heavyweight Fast Retailing, which was the biggest gainer after it reported a double-digit percentage increase in 6-month net. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp conformed to the downbeat mood as trade frictions resurfaced following China's announcement of export controls on rare earth and items related to lithium batteries, while US President Trump commented that maybe they will have to stop importing massive amounts from China.

US-China - US Treasury Secretary Bessent says he believes the Chinese will come back at the end of the season and buy soybeans, adds if it weren't for shutdown, we would have announced support for farmers. (Newswires)

US-India - US Treasury Secretary Bessent says India is going to start rebalancing over the next few weeks and months in favour of US oil and will buy less Russian oil. (Newswires)

US-Japan - Japan government says tariff negotiator Akazawa spoke with US Commerce Secretary Lutnick by phone, while they confirmed to smooth implementation of trade agreement to further strengthen ties. (Newswires)

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: Euro Stoxx 50 -0.40% at 5,627, Dax 40 +0.22% at 24,652, FTSE 100 -0.41% at 9,509, CAC 40 -0.23% at 8,041, FTSE MIB -1.59% at 42,792, IBEX 35 -0.48% at 15,603, PSI +0.99% at 8,230, SMI -0.38% at 12,604, AEX -0.23% at 958

SECTORS: Utilities 0.59%, Materials 0.46%, Telecoms 0.45%, Consumer Stpl 0.27%, Healthcare 0.21%, Energy 0.04%, IT -0.13%, Industrials -0.35%, Financials -1.13%, Consumer Disc -2.44%

FTSE 100

AstraZeneca (AZN LN) - Co. plans to increase investment and scope of its Virginia Manufacturing facility to USD 4.5bln, creating 3,600 jobs. (AstraZeneca)

BP (BP/ LN) – Co. has won a high-stake arbitration case again Venture Global (VG), via the FT. BP is seeking over USD 1bln in damages from the US-LNG producer. (FT)

easyJet (EZJ LN) - UK Unite Union says thousands of members at easyJet secured a 2-year pay deal. Will receive a pay rise ranging from 5-21.58% on basic salary to reward length of service. (Unite)

Shell (SHEL LN) - Trinidad's Attorney General says US grants authorisation to Shell, Trinidad and Tobago to develop a Dragon gas field in Venezuela. (Newswires)

FCA - Payouts could start next year for consumers affected by motor finance agreements under an industry-wide compensation scheme. (Newswires) Of note for Lloyds (LLOY LN)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

HSBC (HSBA LN) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies; the firm is unimpressed with the terms under which HSBC is taking HSB private

DAX

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

PSI Software (PSA GY) - Co. confirms it is in talks with three PE firms (Thoma Bravo, HGCapital, Warburg Pincus) over a potential takeover offer, says it is unclear if an offer will be made. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

CAC

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

PAN EUROPE

Banks - The EU is set to act against Rome’s ‘golden power’ legislation as part of a push against EU countries stopping bank consolidation in Europe, according to Reuters citing sources. (Reuters)

Banco Sabadell (SAB SM) / BBVA (BBVA SM) – Shareholders of each company are currently awaiting the result of BBVA’s recent bid for Sabadell, which is set to close by the end of Friday, writes Bloomberg. The piece adds that the outcome will not be known for another week. (Bloomberg)

Defence Stocks - Germany defence ministry spokesperson says a trilateral ministerial meeting on Franco-German fighter jet has been postponed due to French political crisis. (Newswires)

Bper Banco (BPE IM) - ECB has revised SREP requirements for co. after its taker of BPSO, new CET1 ratio of 9.4% (prev. 9.32%). (Newswires)

Italgas (IG IM) - Co. has struck deals to sell assets in parts of Italy to comply with antitrust conditions to clear its merger with 2i Rete Gas. (Newswires)

Leonardo DRS (DRS) / Leonardo (LDO IM) - Leonardo DRS won a US Department of Defense counter-drone competition with its Ring C-UxS system, using advanced radio-frequency technology to detect, identify, and neutralise drones and autonomous threats across air, land, and sea, reinforcing its role in counter-UAS and air defence solutions. (Newswires)

UniCredit (UCG IM) - S&P upgrades UniCredit rating to "A-" with outlook stable. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

ArcelorMittal (MT NA) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs; writing that the stock now screens as fully valued on forecasts, medium-term growth and EU recovery exposure.

SMI

UBS (UBSG SW) - DoJ launches inquiry into bankruptcy of First Brands, via FT. (FT) UBS said funds it operates, including through its O’Connor hedge-fund unit (which the bank agreed to sell earlier this year), have ~USD 500mln million exposure.

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Swisscom (SCMN SW) resumed with Underweight at JPMorgan

SCANDINAVIA

Coloplast (COLOB DC) - Interim CEO Rasmussen will step down from the Board at the upcoming AGM; to remain in position until a new CEO is appointed. (Newswires)

ISS (ISS DC) - Co. signed a contract worth circa. DKK 100mln, with a financial services co. in Turkey. (Newswires)

Tryg (TRGY DC) - Q3 (DKK): Pre-tax profit 1.98bln (exp. 1.861bln), higher insurance service result was supported by growth of 3.4% in local currency and continued underlying profitability improvement. (Newswires)

Var Energi (VAR NO) - Q3 Trading Update: Co. expects to reach around mid-point of production guidance of 330-360kboepd for FY25. Q4'24 production is exp. to be around 430 kboepd. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

US

CLOSES: SPX -0.28% at 6,735, NDX -0.15% at 25,098, DJI -0.52% at 46,358, RUT -0.61% at 2,469

SECTORS: Materials -1.52%, Industrials -1.44%, Energy -1.30%, Real Estate -0.44%, Financials -0.33%, Utilities -0.23%, Consumer Discretionary -0.20%, Health -0.16%, Technology -0.07%, Communication Services -0.05%, Consumer Staples +0.61%.

Chip Names - Trump administration said the US and Saudi Arabia are making progress on an agreement to allow US chip companies to export semiconductors to Saudi and could finalise a deal soon, via WSJ. (WSJ)

Coinbase (COIN), Mastercard (MA) - Coinbase and Mastercard are reportedly in advanced talks to acquire London-based stablecoin startup BVNK for around USD 2bln, Fortune reports. Sources say Coinbase currently leads the bidding. Founded in 2021, BVNK enables businesses to use stablecoins for payments and treasury operations.

Elastic (ESTC) - Elastic has launched a USD 500mln share repurchase programme with no set expiration, signalling confidence in its business and strategy. Elastic raised Q2 revenue outlook to USD 417-419mln (exp. 416.3mln), and reaffirmed Q2 EPS guidance of 0.56-0.58/shr (exp. 0.57). FY26 revenue guidance was lifted to USD 1.697-1.703bln (exp. 1.69bln). It said it is targeting 20%+ Base and Gen-AI subscription growth, medium-term operating margins above 20%, and free cash flow growth exceeding 20%.

Ford (F) - Ford has scrapped its plan to claim a USD 7,500 EV tax credit on leased vehicles after the subsidy expired, following a similar move by General Motors (GM). Both automakers had intended to use the credit to offset lease costs, but Ford said it will maintain competitive rates through other incentives.

Levi Strauss & Co (LEVI) - Q3 2025 (USD): Adj. EPS 0.34 (exp. 0.31), Net revenue 1.54bln (exp. 1.50bln). Adj. net income 136mln (exp. 119mln). Well-positioned for the holiday season. Raised FY adj. EPS view to 1.27-1.32 (exp. 1.30, prev. 1.25-1.30). FY organic net revenue growth view raised to ~6% (prev. +4.5-5.5%). FY net revenue growth raised to ~3% (prev. +1-2%). (Levi IR) Shares fell 7.7% after market.

US-Switzerland - A Swiss poll shows over 50% of voters favour cancelling or seeking alternatives to the government’s F-35 fighter jet deal with Lockheed Martin (LMT), citing contract disputes and a potential cost increase of up to CHF 1.3bln. The survey was conducted in mid-September by Tamedia/20 Minuten.

NVIDIA (NVDA) - China launches customs crackdown on NVIDIA AI chips, according to FT. "China has stepped up the enforcement of its controls on chip imports, as Beijing seeks to wean the country’s technology companies away from US products such as Nvidia’s artificial intelligence processors." (FT)

Salesforce (CRM) - Salesforce is to acquire Apromore, a process intelligence software provider, to enhance its agentic process automation capabilities. The acquisition will integrate Apromore’s expertise into the Salesforce platform, offering customers a real-time, end-to-end view of business processes. The deal is expected to close in Q4 of Salesforce’s FY26.

US Data - Bureau of Labor Statistics is preparing to release a September CPI report despite the shutdown, according to NYT. (NYT)

US-China - China has intensified enforcement of chip import restrictions to reduce domestic firms’ reliance on US products, including NVIDIA (NVDA) AI processors; customs officers at major ports have stepped up inspections, following guidance from regulators, which directed firms like ByteDance and Alibaba (BABA) to halt NVDA orders and testing. Separately, the US Senate passed legislation requiring Nvidia and AMD to prioritise domestic access to advanced AI chips over China. The bipartisan measure, approved on October 10th, aims to strengthen US competitiveness in advanced technologies and restrict exports to China and other foreign adversaries, despite industry opposition.

10 Oct 2025 - 06:59- Research Sheet- Source: Newsquawk