European stock markets mostly declined on Wednesday, but the composite index rose - NEWS.am

• The Nifty and Sensex indices ended the trading session largely unchanged, reflecting a mixed market sentiment driven by weak global cues. • Mid-cap stocks saw declines, with the Nifty MidCap 150 falling nearly 0.5%, led by significant drops in ITC Hotels (5.5%) and HDFC AMC (4.5%).

• Stock futures declined following reports of another military or political rout in Korea and the release of TSMC's latest financial results. • The market is reacting to heightened geopolitical risks and concerns that the heavy concentration of AI-related stocks leaves little room for error.

• Aakash K Hindocha, Vice President of Research at Nuvama Professional Clients Group/Nuvama Wealth Management, has released stock recommendations for July 16, 2026. • The top identified stocks to buy for the day include Anant Raj, Sobha Ltd, and PNB Housing Finance.

• Indian stock markets saw gains with the Sensex rising 200 points and the Nifty climbing above 24,100, driven by strong performances from ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank. • Sectoral trends were mixed, as Nifty Financial Services, Auto, and Bank indices rose by 1.08%, 0.90%, and 0.83% respectively, while Nifty IT dropped 1.51%.

• Asian stock markets showed mixed performance today, with Japan's Nikkei 225 dropping 2.6% due to the pressure of rising bond yields. • Chinese benchmarks also declined as investors remained concerned over the country's property sector and overall economic growth.

• Asian foreign exchange markets are trading cautiously as a softening U.S. dollar balances ongoing geopolitical risks. • The Bank of Korea implemented a widely expected 25 basis-point interest-rate hike to 2.75%, though the USD/KRW pair still fell approximately 0.4% to around 1,479 won.

• European shares remained flat on Wednesday, with the pan-European STOXX 600 index holding steady at 641.83 points. • Market stability was driven by a conflict between positive corporate earnings and geopolitical instability, specifically escalating tensions in the Middle East.

• Investors are focusing on the release of US retail sales and jobless claims data today to gauge consumer spending and labor market health. • Market expectations for Retail Sales M/M are set at 0.2%, a decrease from the previous 0.9%, while Ex-Autos M/M is projected to drop to -0.1% from 0.8%.

• European shares traded slightly lower as investors balanced positive corporate earnings and merger activity against rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. • Key market movements included gains for ASML and Publicis due to strong demand, while ABB announced a major acquisition and Delivery Hero received a takeover offer.

• Nordea reported strong Q2 2026 financial results, with total income exceeding 3 billion. • The bank achieved a 14% year-on-year increase in lending growth, driven by contributions from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

• U.S. markets rallied on Tuesday, July 15, 2026, driven by technology stock strength and a cooler-than-expected inflation report. • The U.S. consumer price index fell 0.4% in June, resulting in an annual inflation rate of 3.5%, which beat Dow Jones economists' projections of 3.8%.