Market Analysis

European shares declined on Thursday, affected by disappointing corporate earnings and a global slump in tech stocks.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index dropped 1%, hitting a more-than-two-month low by 0717 GMT, with the media sector plunging 4.6%, the steepest decline among sectors.

Universal Music Group fell 26% after reporting a slowdown in its subscription and streaming segment for the second quarter.

The tech sector decreased by 2.7%, influenced by a sell-off in U.S. tech stocks overnight, which led to the Nasdaq plummeting nearly 4% in its worst single-day decline since 2022.

The automobile sector declined by 2.6%, led by a 9.2% drop in Stellantis after the carmaker's first-half results fell short of expectations.

Adding to the negative sentiment, Renault fell 8% after its alliance partner Nissan Motor cut its full-year outlook following a nearly complete wipeout of its first-quarter profit.

Nestle dropped 3.7% after the KitKat maker's half-year sales growth missed analysts' forecasts, and the company lowered its full-year organic sales growth outlook.

Kering fell 8% after the French luxury group reported a larger-than-expected decline in second-quarter sales and projected a weak second half of the year.

On the positive side, Unilever gained 7% after exceeding first-half profit estimates.

Paraphrasing text from "Reuters" all rights reserved by the original author.