European Stocks Close Weak

European stocks closed lower Thursday amid cautious sentiment as investors tracked geopolitical developments, digested Nvidia’s earnings, and assessed U.S. economic data. The pan-European Stoxx 600 ended down 0.2%. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 fell 0.42% and Germany’s DAX inched down 0.03%, while France’s CAC 40 rose 0.24% and Switzerland’s SMI was up 0.1%. France’s Renault gained 3.7%, and telecom and industrials showed mixed moves. Automotive supplier Continental rose 1.7% after selling its ContiTech Original Equipment Solutions unit to Regent. Electrolysis specialist Thyssenkrupp Nucera jumped nearly 3% after Australia’s Progressive Green Solutions selected it as the preferred supplier of 1.4 GW electrolyzers for the Mid-West Green Iron project. On the macro side, the European Commission said Euro Area economic sentiment edged down 0.5 points to 95.2 in August, and consumer confidence eased to -15.5.