European equities edged lower on Wednesday as investors digested a slew of earnings reports, with commodity-related stocks and British bank Lloyds under pressure, though well-received results from Santander buoyed Spanish stocks.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 0.3 per cent, as a pullback in oil prices and miners were hit 6.5 per cent drop in Antofagasta’s shares after its results.
British banking stock Lloyds also dropped 3 per cent after it too reported results.
Earnings weighed on chemical company Novozymes, which dropped 11.5 per cent and was the biggest faller on the STOXX 600 after posting a lower-than-expected third quarter operating profit and trimming its full-year outlook to the lower end of its previous range.
It was joined by Finnish packaging firm Huhtamaki , which fell 8.5 per cent after its own update fell short of expectations.
However, Spain’s IBEX outperformed, rising 0.1 per cent after Banco Santander beat forecasts, sending shares up 1 per cent.
Logitech jumped more than 11 per cent after it saw a rise in Q2 retail revenue, while Kering also rose naerly 8 per cent after its Gucci unit posted its first double digit growth since 2012.
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