Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 16th December 2025

ASIA

APAC stocks were mostly lower after the weak lead from Wall Street, as the tech-related pressure rolled over into the region. ASX 200 marginally declined amid underperformance in the tech, energy and resources sectors, while data showed consumer sentiment deteriorated. Nikkei 225 fell beneath the 50,000 level amid a firmer currency, BoJ rate hike expectations and underperformance in tech and electronics stocks. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were hit amid the tech woes, with the sector heavily represented in the list of worst-performing stocks in the Hong Kong benchmark.

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: Euro Stoxx 50 +0.47% at 5,748, Dax 40 +0.30% at 24,260, FTSE 100 +1.06% at 9,751, CAC 40 +0.70% at 8,125, FTSE MIB +1.39% at 44,117, IBEX 35 +1.11% at 17,041, PSI +0.92% at 8,075, SMI +1.12% at 13,032, AEX +0.66% at 946.

SECTORS: Financials 1.32%, Utilities 0.91%, Consumer Stpl 0.77%, Industrials 0.71%, Materials 0.52%, IT 0.47%, Healthcare 0.40%, Telecoms 0.23%, Consumer Disc 0.07%, Energy 0.05%

FTSE 100

Rio Tinto (RIO LN) - The Co., alongside Mitsui and AMB Holdings, intends to invest a further USD 146mln on exploration between 2026 and 2028 for 50 MTPA Pilbara iron ore mine. (Rio Tinto)

Shell (SHEL LN) – The FT writes that the Shell chief exec had cancelled an internal proposal to purchase BP (BP/ LN) this year, which resulted in the mergers chief to leave the Co. The M&A team opined that BP's falling share price presented a valuable opportunity for Shell, according to people familiar with the matter. (FT)

UK FCA - Britain’s financial regulator is considering a revamp of capital requirements for specialist trading firms as the FCA sees a real opportunity to make rules more proportionate and boost UK competitiveness. Options include tweaking EU-aligned rules, aligning with the U.S. approach, or allowing trading firms to use internal models. (Newswires)

UK-US trade - The US has suspended a technology deal with the UK, in relation to the GBP 31bln ‘tech prosperity deal’, the FT reports citing officials. US officials have been becoming increasingly frustrated with the UK’s lack of willingness to address so-called non-tariff barriers. (FT)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

DAX

Mercedes-Benz (MBG GY) - Co. and Binghatti Developers are collaborating to build a city in Dubai, with an investment value of AED 30bln. (Newswires)

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

CAC

Kering (KER FP) - Co. and Ardian finalise a joint venture agreement for landmark New York property. The deal is valued at USD 900mln, and the net proceeds for Kering from the deal stand at USD 690mln. Execution of a joint venture agreement effective immediately regarding the Kering property located at 715-717 Fifth Avenue in New York. Kering is retaining 40% stake, and Ardian is holding a 60% stake. (Newswires)

TotalEnergies (TTE FP) – Closes an agreement to divest to PTTEP an indirect interest of 9.998% in block SK408 in Malaysia. Co. keeps a 30.002% interest in block SK408. (Newswires)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

Spie (SPIE FP) - Co. announces the signing of an agreement to acquire Worley Power Services, expanding its core expertise in technical maintenance to include power generation assets. Upon acquisition, Worley Power Services will be renamed “SPIE Power Services”. (Spie)

Ubisoft (UBI FP) - Co. announced that it is acquiring the rights to March of Giants from Amazon (AMZN), with the deal expected to close by 16th December. (Ubisoft)

BROKER MOVES

Legrand (LR FP) upgraded to Neutral from Sell at UBS

PAN EUROPE

Geopols - Ukrainian President Zelensky says there is still no ideal peace plan as of now, and the current draft is a working version, adds that the US wants to proceed quickly to peace, and Ukraine needs to ensure quality of this peace. (Newswires)

Magnum (MICC NA) - The FT writes that Magnum is looking to remove the Chair of the Ben & Jerry’s board. (FT)

Stellantis (STLAP FP/STLAM IM) – Co. expands Canadian workforce as Windsor assembly plant surpasses 1,000 new hires for third shift. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

Bankinter (BKT SM) upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at Keefe Bruyette

UniCredit (UCG IM) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Keefe Bruyette

SMI

Holcim (HOLN SW) – Co. is to acquire a majority stake in Cementos Pacasmayo for approximately USD 1.5bln, with the deal set to close in H1 2026. (Holcim)

Roche (ROG SW) - Co. receives FDA approval for first diagnostic tests to identify HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer patients eligible for ENHERTU. (Roche)

UBS (UBSG SW) - Mike Dargan, group chief operations and technology officer, will step down from his role. Chris Gelvin was named interim head of group technology. (Newswires)

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Clariant (CLN SW) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS

Flughafen Zurich (FHZN SW) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS

UBS (UBSG SW) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Bank of America

SCANDINAVIA

BROKER MOVES

US

CLOSES: SPX -0.16% at 6,816, NDX -0.51% at 25,067, DJI -0.09% at 48,417, RUT -0.79% at 2,531.

SECTORS: Health +1.27%, Utilities +0.88%, Consumer Discretionary +0.48%, Real Estate +0.28%, Consumer Staples +0.26%, Industrials +0.15%, Financials +0.12%, Materials +0.04%, Communication Services -0.19%, Energy -0.76%, Technology -1.04%.

Ford (F) - Co. confirms next-gen F-150 Lightning to shift to an EREV architecture and be assembled at Rouge EV center in Dearborn, Michigan Confirms it expects to record about USD 19.5bln in special items with majority in Q4. Outlook 2025 adj. EBIT about USD 7bln and reaffirms 2025 adj. FCF guidance range, trending towards the high end of USD 2-3bln. (Ford)

Global Smartphones - Counterpoint Research suggests that global shipments may fall 2.1% in 2026, citing rising memory chip prices. (Bloomberg)

16 Dec 2025 - 07:03- EquitiesResearch Sheet- Source: Newsquawk