Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 17th November 2025

ASIA

APAC stocks traded mostly lower after the mixed lead from Wall Street, with sentiment in the region subdued as US President Trump over the weekend said he does not think further tariff rollbacks will be necessary. The Nikkei 225 saw modest losses on either side of 50k, while South Korea’s KOSPI (+1.5%) stood out as a clear outperformer amid strong gains in chip names after reports that Samsung is raising chip prices, whilst China's tourist warning to Japan was seen as a positive for South Korea. Focus remains on the tech sector this week in the run-up to NVIDIA earnings midweek. ASX 200 was subdued with sectors mixed. Telecoms, Healthcare, and Consumer Discretionary lagged, while IT and Energy outperformed. Nikkei 225 was choppy and briefly slipped under 50k following Japan’s GDP contraction — the first in six quarters, albeit shallower than feared. Rising tensions between Japan and China added pressure, with Japanese travel-related names hit after Beijing warned citizens against travelling to and studying in Japan. KOSPI was the outperformer, driven by gains in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix after reports that Samsung raised server memory chip contract prices by up to 60% in November due to shortages - the former also plans to add a new chip production line as demand rises. Broader gains were also supported by China’s warning against travel to Japan. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp both traded with modest losses, broadly in line with regional moves (ex-South Korea). Over the weekend, US Treasury Secretary Bessent said the China rare-earths deal will “hopefully” be completed by Thanksgiving but stressed that Washington has “many levers” if Beijing does not comply. President Trump added he does not think further tariff rollbacks will be necessary, noting senior US officials spoke with Chinese counterparts on Friday and that discussions on soybeans continue.

Nomura (8604 JT) - Co. is said to be investigating its India fixed-income business, asking senior officials in its rates division to determine whether profits were inflated in recent years, according to Bloomberg sources. (Bloomberg)

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: Euro Stoxx 50 -0.80% at 5,697, Dax 40 -0.64% at 23,887, FTSE 100 -1.11% at 9,698, CAC 40 -0.76% at 8,170, FTSE MIB -1.70% at 43,995, IBEX 35 -1.40% at 16,346, PSI -0.78% at 8,250, SMI -0.92% at 12,624, AEX -1.00% at 952.

SECTORS: Energy -0.02%, Consumer Disc -0.25%, Industrials -0.30%, Utilities -0.30%, Telecoms -0.59%, Healthcare -1.04%, Consumer Stpl -1.33%, Materials -1.34%, IT -1.64%, Financials -1.85%

FTSE 100

HSBC (HSBA LN) - Former UK Chancellor George Osborne was reportedly approached by HSBC to become the next Chairman of the Co.; other contenders include Deputy Chairman of Standard Chartered (STAN LN) and the former McKinsey boss. (Sky News)

Rio Tinto (RIO LN) - Co. is partnering with Calix to test low-emissions stella making in Western Australia. (Rio Tinto)

Shell (SHEL LN) - Shell has been ordered to pay Venture Global’s legal fees after losing an LNG arbitration case. Venture Global said the International Court of Arbitration awarded an undisclosed sum, which it plans to use for coastal restoration in Louisiana. (Newswires)

WPP (WPP LN) - Co. is reportedly drawing takeover interest from rival Havas (HAVAS NA); talks have been at a high level, according to sources. (The Times)

UK Budget / Gambling names - UK Chancellor Reeves is reportedly looking at slightly increasing tax on online sports betting, whilst keeping taxes steady on those placed at shops. (FT)

UK Housing - UK Rightmove House Prices YY (Nov) -0.5% (Prev. -0.1%); House Prices MM (Nov) -1.8% (Prev. +0.3%). (Newswires)

UK Investment Platforms - UK Chancellor Reeves faces resistance from major investment platforms over a proposed ISA reform requiring a minimum allocation to UK equities. The Treasury sought a voluntary commitment from firms such as Hargreaves Lansdown, AJ Bell, Interactive Investor, Fidelity, Vanguard and Quilter, but industry pushback emerges less than two weeks before the budget. (Bloomberg)

UK PM Starmer - Senior Labour figures have reportedly questioned PM Starmer’s future after a shock budget U-turn on income tax. Allies reportedly saw the reversal as politically fatal, leaving officials and taxpayers scrambling to understand the abrupt policy shift. (Bloomberg)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

DAX

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Heidelberg (HEI GY) upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays

CAC

Airbus (AIR FP) - Co. is nearing a deal to sell around 100 A312NEO and several dozen 737 Max jets to Flydubai, according to Reuters’ sources. In other news, an executive states that its Middle East’s regional aircraft fleet is expected to grow to 3,700 by 2044. (Reuters/ Newswires)

BNP Paribas (BNP FP) - BNP Paribas has asked a judge to overturn a USD 20.75mln verdict awarded to three former Sudanese refugees who said the bank helped fund an abusive regime. The bank argues Swiss law does not allow such claims, the plaintiffs failed to prove their case, and the damages were excessive. (Bloomberg)

EssilorLuxottica (EL FP) - Meta has opened pop-up stores in New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas to promote its popular Ray-Ban AI glasses. Designed for social sharing, the shops encourage visitors to linger, take photos and try the wearables, extending Meta’s retail push after strong demand last year. (EssilorLuxottica)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

BNP Paribas (BNP FP) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank

PAN EUROPE

Andritz (ANDR AV) - Co. has received an order from Altri for key white liquor plant and fiberline equipment. (Andritz)

EU Defence - Germany and France are potentially downsizing its EUR 100bln flagship air defence project by dropping plans to jointly build a fighter jet. (FT)

Greece Credit Rating - Fitch upgraded Greece’s sovereign rating to BBB from BBB-, citing continued debt reduction and another expected budget surplus despite planned fiscal easing. All major agencies now rate Greece two notches above junk, except Moody’s which remains one notch lower. (Newswires)

Prosus (PRX NA) - Trading statement: Core headline EPS for continuing operations is to increase by between 20.1-28.5% for H1. (Prosus)

Santander (SAN SM) - Santander chair Ana Botín said bank mergers should prioritise “friendly deals” given heavy regulation and governments’ protection of national interests, arguing that cordial transactions are most viable in today’s environment. (Bloomberg)

Snam (SRG IM) - Co. reportedly set to abandon its acquisition of the minority stake in Germany's open grid Europe amid Berlin's resistance, according to Reuters citing sources. (Reuters)

BROKER MOVES

ArcelorMittal (MT NA) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS

Endesa (ELE SM) downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan

SMI

Logitech (LOGN SW) - The Co. reported that the recent cybersecurity incident has not impacted its products, business operations or manufacturing. The incident will not materially affect its financial condition. (Logitech)

UBS (UBSG SW) - Co. has partnered with Ant International on a blockchain-based real-time cross border payment settlement and liquidity management. (Morningstar)

US-Switzerland Trade- The White House released a framework agreed between the US and Switzerland, noting that under the President’s leadership billions of dollars of investment by major Swiss companies such as Roche (ROG SW), Novartis (NOVN SW), ABB (ABBN SW) and Stadler (SRAIL SW) have already been announced, with more on the way; Swiss and Liechtenstein companies will invest at least USD 200bln into the US, including USD 67bln in 2026. The trading partners will pay a cumulative reciprocal tariff rate of no higher than 15%, matching the European Union’s treatment. Switzerland and Liechtenstein intend to remove a range of tariffs across agricultural and industrial sectors — including various fresh and dried nuts, fish and seafood, certain fruits, chemicals and spirits such as whiskey and rum — while Switzerland will also establish tariff-rate quotas for American poultry, beef and bison; both countries also plan to address non-tariff barriers that have long prevented US goods from entering their markets.

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

Sandoz (SDZ SW) - Co. launches TYRUKO in the US, as the first and only multiple sclerosis biosimilar. (Newswires)

Siegfried (SFZN SW) - Tania Micki to be appointed as CFO, effective July 1, 2026, as Reto Suter steps down as CFO. (Siegfried)

SIG (SIGN SW) - Co. names Mikko Keto CEO; effective H1’26. (Newswires)

Tecan (TECN SW) - Co. announces that CFO Micki is to step down after May 2026. (Tecan)

BROKER MOVES

SCANDINAVIA

FLSmidth (FLS DC) - CEO Mikko Keto is stepping down as CEO during H1’26. (FLSmidth)

Saab (SAABB SS) - Co. has received an order for 17 Gripen E/F fighter aircraft from the Colombian Government. In addition, it has received a total order value of nearly EUR 549mln from Airbus Defence and Space for the Arexis EW sensor suite. (Saab)

BROKER MOVES

US

CLOSES: SPX -0.05% at 6,734, NDX +0.06% at 25,008, DJI -0.65% at 47,147, RUT +0.22% at 2,388.

SECTORS: Materials -1.18%, Financials -0.97%, Communication Services -0.80%, Health -0.63%, Consumer Discretionary -0.61%, Consumer Staples -0.05%, Industrials -0.02%, Utilities +0.02%, Real Estate +0.28%, Technology +0.74%, Energy +1.37%.

Alphabet (GOOG) - Google will invest USD 40bln in three new Texas data centres by 2027 to expand AI computing capacity. Sites will be in Armstrong County and twice in Haskell County, with one paired with a new solar and battery facility to reduce grid impact. Disney and YouTube TV reached a new deal restoring ABC, ESPN and other Disney channels after a two-week blackout caused by a licensing dispute. Both sides blamed each other for costly terms, with channels returning from 15 November. The outage disrupted major sports and news coverage for subscribers. Elsewhere, Google plans to raise its India data hub investment to more than USD 15bln, according to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister; further details were limited. Finally, Berkshire Hathaway (BRK) bought 17.9mln Alphabet shares in Q3, building a USD 4.9bln stake; the Alphabet holding represents about 0.31% of the company, according to regulatory filings. (Google)

Apple (AAPL) - Co. has intensified succession planning for CEO Tim Cook and is preparing for him to step down as soon as next year, with John Ternus, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering, widely seen as his most likely successor, according to the FT. (FT)

Boeing (BA) - Boeing will prioritise factory stability before increasing aircraft production again in 2026. After US regulators approved a rise in 737 output to 42 per month from 38, the company said it will first consolidate this rate before attempting further increases, reflecting caution after previous production setbacks. Separately, Boeing has successfully flight-tested the upgraded Remote Vision System 2.0 on its KC-46 tanker, resolving camera issues that had delayed deliveries. The upgrade, demonstrated at the Dubai Airshow, marks major progress on the multibillion-dollar programme, which the US Air Force had previously suggested might be delayed until 2027. (Bloomberg)

Opioid Lawsuits, Purdue Pharma - Purdue Pharma won approval for a settlement of at least USD 7.4bln, allowing it to exit six years of bankruptcy and resolve extensive opioid-related lawsuits. The ruling paves the way for the company’s dissolution and concludes one of the most significant cases of the US opioid crisis.

RTX Corporation (RTX) - RTX's Pratt & Whitney said it has supplied Airbus with enough engines to meet its 2025 delivery target. The company is now delivering engines for next year, with its commercial engines chief confirming alignment with Airbus’s remaining 2025 requirements ahead of the Dubai Airshow. Elsewhere, the US has approved a potential sale of up to USD 3.5bln in RTX-made missiles to Germany, including 173 SM-6 Block I and 577 SM-2 Block IIIC missiles plus related equipment, as Berlin boosts its defence capabilities. (Newswires)

Tesla (TSLA) - Co. is now reportedly requiring its suppliers to exclude China-made components in the manufacturing of its cars in the US, a fresh example of the fallout from Washington–Beijing tensions, according to the WSJ. (WSJ)

17 Nov 2025 - 07:00- Research Sheet- Source: Newsquawk