European stocks mixed; IMF report, quarterly earnings in focus

European stock markets traded in a mixed fashion Tuesday, as investors digested more third-quarter corporate earnings amid uncertainty over global growth and the future path of interest rates.

At 03:10 ET (07:10 GMT), the DAX index in Germany traded 0.5% higher, while the CAC 40 in France fell 0.1% and the FTSE 100 in the U.K. dropped 0.4%.

IMF to update growth forecasts
The European Central Bank cut interest rates last week, the central bank’s first back-to-back rate cut since 2011 amid concerns about economic activity in the region.

The International Monetary Fund will update its global growth forecasts later Tuesday.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva last week flagged a lackluster outlook, saying the global economy was headed for slow medium-term growth, and pointing to a “difficult future”, with continued weakness in China and Europe.

The European Central Bank is likely to cut its key interest rate down to its “natural” level between 2% and 3% but it may need to reduce it even further if a fall in inflation becomes entrenched, ECB policymaker Gediminas Simkus said on Monday.

HSBC consolidates into four units
In the corporate sector, HSBC (LON:HSBA) stock fell 0.4% after the banking giant named veteran insider Pam Kaur as its first female finance chief and announced a consolidation of the bank into four business units.

SAP (ETR:SAPG) stock soared over 5% after the German software company raised its full-year targets on strong cloud business in the third quarter, with artificial intelligence a key growth driver.

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Mulberry (LON:MUL) rejected a second takeover proposal from the Frasers Group, with the British luxury brand saying the possible offer is “untenable”.

InterContinental Hotels (LON:IHG) stock fell 2% after the group posted third-quarter room revenue growth, but still noted a subdued U.S. market and weakness in China.

Randstad (AS:RAND) sock rose 4% after the world’s largest employment agency, reported quarterly profit slightly ahead of expectations as trading conditions stabilized across some of its markets despite a challenging macroeconomic environment.

Saab (ST:SAABb) sock rose almost 3% after the Swedish aerospace and defense company reported a rise in third-quarter operating earnings and affirmed its outlook for surging sales and profits this year.

The earnings deluge on Wall Street continues Tuesday, with results due from the likes of Texas Instruments (NASDAQ:TXN), 3M, General Motors (NYSE:GM), Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT), General Electric (NYSE:GE) and Verizon (NYSE:VZ).

Crude slips on demand worries
Oil prices dipped lower Tuesday as uncertainty over global demand growth, particularly from China, the world’s top oil importer, continued to weigh.

By 03:10 ET, the Brent contract dropped 0.7% to $73.74 per barrel, while U.S. crude futures (WTI) traded 0.7% lower at $69.54 per barrel.

International Energy Agency head Fatih Birol warned on Monday that economic weakness in China will continue to stunt global oil demand in the coming years.

Birol’s comments — made in an interview with Bloomberg — came after both the International Energy Agency and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries recently cut their demand growth forecasts on concerns over China.

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The tensions in the Middle East remain in focus, as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed to the region seeking to revive talks to end the conflict which has seen traders attach some risk premium to crude prices, on the prospect of supply disruptions in the region.