European markets closed mixed

Frankfurt — European stocks turned in a mixed performance on Monday as investors reacted to developments on the political front after French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu submitted his resignation just hours after unveiling his cabinet.

Despite regaining some lost ground after a sharp early setback, the French stock market languished in negative territory as the mood remained quite bearish following a warning from the Socialists that they would vote against the government if its fails to break with French President Emmanuel Macron’s past policies.

Traders also digested the latest batch of regional economic data, and continued to assess the potential impact of the government shutdown in the United States. Bank stocks were among the major losers. In the UK market, miners and energy stocks found support thanks to higher commodity prices.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 edged down 0.04%. The UK’s FTSE 100 closed down by 0.13%, and Germany’s DAX settled flat, while France’s CAC 40 ended 1.36% down, despite recovering some lost ground.

Switzerland’s SMI climbed 0.35%. Markets in Austria, Belgium, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Poland, Spain and Turkey closed weak. The Czech Republic, Denmark, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Russia and Sweden ended higher.

In the UK market, Prudential, Endeavour Mining, BP, Admiral Group, Glencore, SSE, Shell and gained 1.3 to 3%.shares of paper and packaging company Mondi tanked 16%, after the company warned of weak demand and falling prices across most pulp and paper grades. Metlen Energy & Metals closed down by 2.9%. Kingfisher, BAE Systems, Diageo, IMI, Bunzl and 3i Group lost 1.6 to 2%.

In the German market, BMW rallied about 3.3%. Hannover Rueck also gained more than 3%. Munich RE climbed about 2.5%.RWE, Siemens Healthineers, Qiagen, Continental, Siemens and Gea Group closed higher by 0.7 to 1.4%. Rheinmetall fell 4.7%. Brenntag, Bayer, Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank and Fresenius lost 1 to 2%.

In the French market, Stellantis gained about 3.5%. ArcelorMittal and STMicroElectronics climbed up by about 1.25% and 1.1%, respectively. Societe Generale, Credit Agricole, Thales, BNP Paribas, Saint-Gobain, Bouygues, Hermes International, AXA, LVMH, EssilorLuxottica, Veolia Environment and Engie lost 2 to 4.3%. Renault was down more than 3% on reports that the company may cut 3,000 jobs worldwide.

In economic news, survey data from S&P Global showed Germany’s construction sector contracted in September as growth in civil engineering is being more than offset by sustained downturns in housing and commercial activity.

The HCOB construction Purchasing Managers’ Index rose moderately to 46.2 in September from 46.0 in August. Meanwhile, the HCOB Eurozone Construction PMI fell to 46 in September 2025, from 46.7 in the previous month, indicating a further contraction in the sector.

Data from Eurostat showed eurozone retail sales edged up 0.1% month-over-month in August 2025, recovering from a revised 0.4% decline in July. On an annual basis, retail trade growth slowed sharply to 1% in August, marking the weakest year-on-year increase since July 2024.

In economic news, data from Eurostat showed eurozone retail sales edged up 0.1% month-over-month in August 2025, recovering from a revised 0.4% decline in July. On an annual basis, retail trade growth slowed sharply to 1% in August, marking the weakest year-on-year increase since July 2024.

Meanwhile, the HCOB Eurozone Construction PMI fell to 46 in September 2025, from 46.7 in the previous month, indicating a further contraction in the sector.