European markets close higher after ECB cuts rates for the third time this year

There is “probably” more downside than upside risk to the ECB’s inflation forecast, the group’s President Christine Lagarde told CNBC’s Annette Weisbach during the post-decision press conference.

Asked about recent warnings that the ECB now faces a return of its old challenge of too-low inflation, Lagarde said: “We can debate ad nauseum on this particular matter, and you will find views on both sides of the equation.”

“What is clear to all is that we still have risks on both sides of our forecast, both upside and downside, probably more downside risk than upside risk, but I am talking here about our forecast for inflation,” she added.

— Jenni Reid

Despite flagging various more positive indicators — including easing labor cost pressures, a key area of concern — the ECB is “not pre-committing to a particular rate path,” the central bank’s President Christine Lagarde said during her press conference.

She also repeated past messaging that the Governing Council is “determined to ensure inflation returns to our 2% target in a timely manner,” and that rates will remain restrictive for as long as possible to achieve that.

The approach remains “data-dependent and meeting by meeting,” she said.

— Jenni Reid

Traders will now turn their attention to the European Central Bank’s press conference from 1:45 p.m. London time for any clues on the central bank’s future rate path.

It comes shortly after the ECB delivered a quarter-point rate cut at its October meeting.

“The incoming information on inflation shows that the disinflationary process is well on track,” the ECB said in a statement. “The inflation outlook is also affected by recent downside surprises in indicators of economic activity.”

— Sam Meredith

The European Central Bank on Thursday lowered the deposit rate by 25 basis points, delivering back-to-back rate cuts for the first time in 13 years.

The move, which had been widely expected, marks the central bank’s third interest rate cut of the year.

— Sam Meredith

The euro traded little changed for the session at $1.0863, with just a few minutes to go before the European Central Bank’s next monetary policy decision.

The ECB is widely expected to deliver a quarter-point interest rate cut at its October meeting.

— Sam Meredith

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde is likely to stop short of committing the central bank to an interest rate cut in December, according to Iain Stealey, international chief investment officer of global fixed income currency and commodities at J.P. Morgan Asset Management.

His comments come ahead of the ECB’s next monetary policy decision on Thursday, where many expect the central bank to deliver a quarter-point rate cut for the second consecutive meeting.

“If we take a step back, sort of three weeks ago, we wouldn’t have thought we’d have been talking about a cut today because, as you said, it is not the norm for them to going meeting after meeting, and it felt like they would be skipping this meeting and moving onto December,” Stealey told CNBC’s “Street Signs Europe” on Thursday.

“But I think maybe more importantly is what does the future look like,” he continued. “I do think Christine Lagarde is going to want to try to distance herself from absolutely fully committing to December.”

— Sam Meredith

European markets extended gains through morning trade as investors prepared for what is widely expected to be the European Central Bank’s first back-to-back interest rate cut in 13 years.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 traded 0.7% higher at around 11:50 a.m. London time. The benchmark regional index opened Thursday’s session marginally above the flatline.

— Sam Meredith

Shares of German lab supplies maker Sartorius rose nearly 12% on Thursday after the company reported nine-month results in line with expectations and confirmed its full-year outlook.

The company surged to the top of the Stoxx 600 on the news.

— Sam Meredith

Shares of Nokia fell more than 4% on Thursday after the Finnish telecom firm reported mixed third-quarter earnings.

The company posted a 9% uptick in third-quarter operating profit on an annualized basis, beating analyst estimates, but reported that quarterly net sales fell 8% year-over-year to 4.33 billion euros ($4.7 billion).

The stock tumbled toward to the bottom of the pan-European Stoxx 600 on the news.

— Sam Meredith

The euro traded 0.1% lower at $1.0852 on Thursday morning, as investors looked ahead to the next monetary policy decision from the European Central Bank.

The ECB is widely expected to deliver a quarter-point interest rate cut for the second consecutive meeting later in the day.

The new CEO of Swiss engineering group ABB said on Thursday that rapidly growing data centers and the electrification of everything is “really driving” the business.

His comments come as the group reported a mixed set of quarterly results. ABB posted third-quarter operational core profit of $1.55 billion, repeating a record level of operational EBITA (earnings before interest, taxes, and amortization) margin of 19%, and raised its full-year profitability expectations.

ABB said, however, that it expects full-year comparable revenue growth to come in “below 5%”, a slight downgrade from a previous forecast of “about 5%.”

“We have put in a very strong quarter of order growth and a positive book to build and also, as you said, a record profit so it really shows this benefit of having a broad industrial exposure, especially into the electrification of everything these days,” Morten Wierod, CEO of ABB, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Thursday.

“And with a boost obviously in data centers and the need for electricity, that is really driving ABB at the moment,” he added. Wierod took charge of ABB on Aug. 1, succeeding Bjorn Rosengren.

Shares of ABB were up 1.1% on Thursday morning.

— Sam Meredith

Swiss food giant Nestle on Thursday posted weaker-than-anticipated underlying sales growth for the first nine months of the year and downgraded its forecast for full-year sales.

Nestle reported organic sales growth of 2% for the first nine months of 2024, a weaker reading than the 2.5% forecast by analysts polled by Reuters.

The company, which also announced a revamp to its senior leadership and organizational changes, said it now expects full-year sales growth of around 2%, in line with the first nine months. It had previously forecast 2024 organic sales growth to hit at least 3%.

Shares of the company fell 2.3% on Thursday morning.

— Sam Meredith

European stocks were slightly higher shortly after Thursday’s opening bell.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 traded up nearly 0.2%, with most sectors in positive territory.

— Sam Meredith

The chief executive of French power-equipment maker Schneider Electric said on Thursday that the firm’s $850 million deal to take a controlling stake in U.S.-based liquid cooling company Motivair will help to bolster its offering to fast-growing and energy-intensive data centers.

“We’ve always said we are going to be agile in respect to acquisitions and targets out there that fit exactly into the strategy of Schneider Electric,” Schneider Electric CEO Peter Herweck told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Thursday.

“And as the biggest provider of infrastructure for data centers, we thought with the evolution with [generative] AI and large language models, more high-density data centers are required and you need to … go from the grid to the chip and then from the chip to the chiller.”

Herweck said the all-cash deal to acquire an initial 75% controlling interest in the equity of Motivair, which was announced on Thursday, was “rich, but not overly expensive” and “fits great” with the firm’s strategy.

The acquisition takes place as a global rush for the next wave of generative AI coincides with increasing public scrutiny on environmental concerns, with technology giants recently pivoting to nuclear in an attempt to power its AI ambitions.

— Sam Meredith

The European Central Bank (ECB) will likely cut interest rates by 25 basis points on Thursday, but market participants shouldn’t expect much in the way of forward guidance, according to Goldman Sachs.

Jari Stehn, chief European economist at Goldman Sachs, said part of the reason that the euro hasn’t come under more pressure in recent weeks is because the ECB has been cutting rates “in a very data dependent fashion without giving you an awful lot of guidance about where you are headed next.”

“And we think that is very much going to be the message also today,” Stehn told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Thursday.

“So, we’ll get the 25-basis point cut,” Stehn said, citing weaker economic data. “But I do sense that the ECB at this stage is not really willing to a commit to a particular path.”

— Sam Meredith

European markets are expected to open mixed Thursday.

The U.K.’s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 31 points higher at 8,360, Germany’s DAX up 21 points at 19,472, France’s CAC up 4 points at 7,495 and Italy’s FTSE MIB down 10 points at 34,482, according to data from IG.

The main focus for investors today will be the latest monetary policy decision from the European Central Bank. Meanwhile, earnings come from ABB, Nestle, Pernod Ricard, Publicis and Nokia.

Other data releases include European trade balance figures and inflation data.

— Holly Ellyatt

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