European shares slipped on Wednesday as concerns about a potential U.S. debt default weighed on sentiment. The continent-wide STOXX 600 eased 0.2%, with defensive sectors such as food and beverage, utilities and real estate firms leading declines. U.S. President Joe Biden is continuing talks with congressional leaders on raising the country’s debt limit, with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy vowing to avoid a default.
Several corporate updates also weighed on sentiment. German lender Commerzbank AG fell 3.8% after its net interest income forecast for the full year fell short of analysts’ expectations. Euronext NV dropped 3.0% after the stock exchange operator reported a fall in first-quarter revenue and income, while London Stock Exchange Group was down 2.7% after an investor consortium sold shares worth about 2.7 billion pounds.
On the upside, Siemens AG climbed 2.6% after the engineering and technology group raised its full-year sales and profit guidance, while business software maker SAP added 0.8% after raising its 2025 total revenue outlook and announcing a share buyback of up to 5 billion euros. French catering group Elior slumped 22.8% after lowering its margin forecast on likely lower sales growth and high inflation. Thyssenkrupp jumped 6.8% after Bloomberg News reported the German submarine-to-steel group is planning to launch an IPO of its hydrogen business Nucera next month.