Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 25th September 2025

ASIA

APAC stocks traded mixed for most of the session following a softer Wall Street handover, with the breadth of the market narrow and price action uneventful amid a lack of fresh catalysts heading into quarter-end. The region then tilted into a modestly positive picture despite a lack of drivers. ASX 200 was initially in the red, pressured by gold miners as the yellow metal pulled back from near USD 3,800/oz levels, while notable gains in Energy helped offset some of the downside. Nikkei 225 moved between modest gains and losses and found some support at the 45,500 mark. BoJ minutes from two meetings ago suggested one member said rates should be raised when possible, as policy is still below neutral and the BoJ should not be too cautious, whilst one member added the BoJ could exit its wait-and-see mode as soon as this year if the US economy proves resilient. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were choppy, with Hong Kong and Mainland China initially trimming their modest opening gains before recouping. Participants overlooked reports that a non-principal-level Chinese delegation will visit the US Treasury on Thursday for staff-level technical discussions on trade and the economy. Sources suggested the TikTok issue will not be discussed and emphasised these talks are not the next round of trade negotiations but rather a technical meeting.

ByteDance, Oracle (ORCL), Fox (FOX) - President Trump will sign an executive order Thursday declaring a US deal for TikTok meets the 2024 divestiture law, Reuters reports. The order will extend the mid-December enforcement deadline as the White House works to extract TikTok’s US assets, line up American investors and finalise full divestiture from ByteDance, the report says.

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: Euro Stoxx 50 -0.11% at 5,466, Dax 40 +0.30% at 23,682, FTSE 100 +0.29% at 9,250, CAC 40 -0.57% at 7,827, FTSE MIB -0.13% at 42,423, IBEX 35 +0.37% at 15,215, PSI +1.32% at 7,915, SMI -1.01% at 11,980, AEX +0.08% at 935

SECTORS: Energy 1.57%, Utilities 0.58%, Materials 0.32%, Industrials 0.01%, Telecoms -0.07%, Financials -0.14%, Consumer Stpl -0.15%, IT -0.61%, Healthcare -0.71%, Consumer Disc -0.92%

FTSE 100

BP (BP/ LN) - BP has transferred GBP 1.6bln of its GBP 18bln UK pension fund to Legal & General (LGEN LN), in a move to reduce retirement payment risks. The fund, one of the UK's largest, remains managed by BP's in-house asset manager, Bloomberg reports. (Bloomberg)

Ex-Dividends - Phoenix Group Holdings (PHNX LN) and Rightmove (RMV LN) will trade without entitlement to their latest dividend pay-out. (Newswires)

HSBC Group (HSBA LN) - HSBC said it achieved a breakthrough in applying quantum computing to financial markets, using IBM’s (IBM) Heron processor to improve bond price prediction accuracy by 34%. Testing on anonymised European bond data demonstrated potential for significantly enhancing market efficiency, as Wall Street firms increasingly race to integrate quantum technology. Elsewhere, Co. said it will be selling its retail banking operations in Sri Lanka; its corporate business will not be impacted. (Newswires)

SSP Group (SSPG LN) - Activist shareholder Irenic Capital Management wants the Co. to go private, via FT. Irenic suggested that SSP could be valued at a 50% premium vs current market value. The FT writes that Irenic has increased its stake to around 3% (prev. 2% in May). (FT)

UK Autos Production - UK car production fell 10% in August to 37,072 units, with commercial vehicle output down 73%, marking the lowest August total since 1956. A cyberattack at Jaguar Land Rover, which halted production, is expected to further exacerbate challenges in the country’s struggling automotive industry, Bloomberg reports. (Bloomberg)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

DAX

Mercedes Benz (MBG GY) - Co. is to take a 3% stake in Chongqing Qianli Technology (601777 CH), totalling around USD 187.9mln. (Newswires)

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

KWS (KWS GY) - FY (EUR): EBITDA 350.5mln (exp. 347.4mln), Revenue 1.67bln (exp. 1.65bln). (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

CAC

Airbus (AIR FP) / Boeing (BA) - Cathay Pacific is discussing with shareholders a “substantial” new aircraft order for the next decade, CEO said. The Hong Kong carrier plans to expand its fleet with additional single-aisle jets, regional widebodies, and freighter planes to support growth from the start of the next decade.

LVMH (MC FP) - LVMH is expanding in South Korea to offset US and China consumer uncertainties. Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior plan to grow their flagship stores in Seoul’s Cheongdam district, with Dior’s revamp potentially launching in 2027 and featuring a permanent restaurant, reflecting the group’s strategy to diversify its global presence, Bloomberg reports. (Bloomberg)

L'Oreal (OR FP) - Alexis Perakis Valat will be appointed CEO of L'Oreal USA and President of North America. (Newswires)

Safran (SAF FP) - India is considering French-made fighter jet engines from Safran as negotiations with the US on joint manufacturing progresses slowly, Bloomberg reports. Officials did not clarify whether India plans to purchase the engines or pursue local joint production, with discussions remaining private. (Bloomberg)

TotalEnergies (TTE FP) - Board of directors confirms priority given to dividend growth through cycles; confirmed shareholder return policy of at least 40% of annual cash flow from operations through cycles. Expects to maintain gearing ratio below 20% in an uncertain economic and geopolitical environment. Board approved 2026 share buyback guidance between EUR 750mln-1.5bln per quarter for Brent price between USD 60-70/bbl and EUR/USD exchange rate around 1.20. (Newswires)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

Eiffage (FGR FP) - Co. construction contract with 3F Normanvie for the renovation of 620 homes in Rouen; contract worth EUR 40.8mln. (Newswires)

Sopra Steria (SOP FP) - Proposed acquisition of Neocase; acquisition is exp. to complete in Q4'25. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

TotalEnergies (TTE FP) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Berenberg.

PAN EUROPE

Autos - EU, UK & EFTA August passenger car registrations rise 4.7% Y/Y, according to ACEA. EVs account for 62.2% of new EU registrations. BYD's (002594 CH) EU market share reaches 1.3% in August, outselling Tesla (TSLA) for second consecutive month. (Newswires)

Defence - EU leaders have concluded that US President Trump is no longer a reliable ally, according to FT citing officials; Officials fear that Trump's new rhetoric on Ukraine aims to shift the blame away from Washington if Kyiv falters in the war. Elsewhere, Unidentified drones were observed over four airports across Denmark, causing one of them to close for several hours, according to Danish police. (Newswires)

EU-China - European Commission President von der Leyen said she had a good and frank exchange with Chinese Premier Li Qiang, noting on trade that she appreciates China’s willingness to engage in a spirit of mutual understanding, according to a post on X. (Newswires)

Trade - US is said to be in talks with G7 and EU on broader rare earth trade measures to prevent price dumping which could include tariffs, price floors, or other measures, according to Reuters citing a Trump admin official. (Newswires)

Machinery - US opens 232 probes into robotics, machinery and medical devices, according to Bloomberg. (Bloomberg)

BROKER MOVES

Bankinter (BKT SM) initiated with Neutral at Goldman Sachs

Banco BPM (BAMI IM) initiated with Buy at Goldman Sachs

SMI

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

Sandoz (SDZ SW) - Co. launches affordable iron sucrose injection for treatment of iron deficiency anaemia in patients with chronic kidney disease in US. (Newswires)

Schindler AG (SCHN SW) - Enters services agreement with Accor (AC FP) for elevators and escalators in nine Asian markets. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

Bachem Holdings (BANB SW) initiated with Underperform at Jefferies.

SCANDINAVIA

BROKER MOVES

US

CLOSES: SPX -0.28% at 6,638, NDX -0.31% at 24,504, DJI -0.37% at 46,121, RUT -0.92% at 2,435

SECTORS: Materials -1.59%, Real Estate -1.01%, Communication Services -0.82%, Technology -0.52%, Industrials -0.51%, Health -0.36%, Financials -0.23%, Consumer Staples +0.13%, Consumer Discretionary +0.70%, Utilities +0.73%, Energy +1.23%.

Apple (AAPL) - Co. highlights concern over Digital Markets Act impact on product design for European users; Co. calls for regulatory review amid potential disruptions under new EU tech rules

Cadence Design (CDNS), TSMC (TSM) - Cadence and TSMC deepen collaboration on chip design automation and IP, advancing AI and HPC semiconductor development. The partnership leverages AI-driven EDA, 3D-ICs, and photonics, enabling optimal power, performance, and area on TSMC N2. (Newswires)

NVIDIA (NVDA) - CEO Huang sells 225k common shares across multiple transactions at prices ranging between USD 174.82 and USD 184.38 per share, according to Reuters citing SEC filing (vs USD 176.97/shr close); executed under pre-arranged trading plan

RTX (RTX) - Co. reports Collins Aerospace continues restoration of on-site passenger processing software after cyber-attack, according to its website

US-China - A non-principal-level Chinese delegation will visit the US Treasury on Thursday for staff-level technical discussions on trade and the economy. The talks are not the next round of trade negotiations and TikTok will not be addressed. A source added that no negotiations will occur during the visit and US principals will not meet with Chinese technical staff while they are in Washington, according to FBN's Lawrence.

Intel (INTC) to ask Apple (AAPL) - Co. to invest as part of a comeback bid, Bloomberg reports. Intel and Apple have also discussed ways to work more closely. Talks are early and may not lead to an agreement. (Newswires)

25 Sep 2025 - 07:00- Geopolitical- Source: Newsquawk