Traders work, as a screen broadcasts a news conference by U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell following the Fed rate announcement, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., Sept. 17, 2025.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
LONDON — European stocks edged higher on Wednesday, with some stocks particularly buoyed by earnings, as investors awaited the conclusion of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s meeting.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.2% higher at 10:21 a.m. in London (6:21 a.m. ET), with major indexes and sectors mixed.
The U.K.’s FTSE 100 index made gains of almost 0.5%, Germany’s DAX dipped around 0.1% and France’s CAC 40 was last seen straddling the flatline. Italy’s FTSE MIB advanced 0.4%, as did Spain’s IBEX 35, which has performed well recently.
The big event for markets is the Fed’s interest rate cut today, with a quarter-point trim widely seen as a done deal by traders. If the Federal Open Market Committee acts as expected, it will bring the federal funds rate to a range between 3.75%-4.00%.
What’s less certain is whether Chair Jerome Powell will strike a dovish tone in his post-meeting comments.
Following the cut this week, 84% of respondents see another reduction in December, and 54% see a third in January, according to the October CNBC Fed Survey. A total of 100 basis points of rate cuts are forecast this year and next, bringing the fed funds rate down to 3.2% by the end of 2026.
Earnings in focus
Earnings are also dominating market attention this week, with Alphabet, Meta Platforms and Microsoft set to report after the U.S. close on Wednesday. Apple and Amazon post results on Thursday.
In Europe, Germany’s Mercedes-Benz Group on Wednesday reported a 70% fall in third-quarter operating profit, citing charges related to thousands of job cuts as it seeks to save 5 billion euros ($5.81 billion) by 2027. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) came in at 750 million euros for the quarter, down sharply from 2.5 billion euros in the same period last year.
The luxury carmaker, like its European industry peers, faces a perfect storm of challenges as robust Chinese demand and increased expenses due to U.S. tariffs take their toll. Nonetheless, shares of the Mercedes-Benz Group jumped 5.7% during morning trade, paring some earlier gains that put the firm on track for its best trading day since July 2022.
In early morning filings, Santander posted a record nine-month profit, rising 7.8% year-on-year, which the bank put down to strong business performance and efficiencies, such as simplifying operations, fewer bad loans and credit risks, and more customers. Its shares were last seen 3.8% higher on Wednesday.
The firm’s revenue hit 15.3 billion euros in the third quarter, up 1% year-on-year but narrowly missing analyst estimations, according to data compiled by LSEG. Its net operating income, however, slightly overperformed at 8.99 billion euros, a 2% increase on last year’s quarter. It held tight on its 2025 guidance of 62 billion euros in revenue.
However, Santander’s British subsidiary delayed its results following a court judgement on Friday that ruled it must disclose the dealer commissions on motor finance transactions, as part of the fallout from the motor finance scandal.
Meanwhile, Deutsche Bank shares gained around 1.3% after it reported better-than-expected net profit of 1.56 billion euros in the third quarter, compared with 1.34 billion euros that analysts expected, per LSEG. The figure represents a quarterly rise of 7%. The German bank said that all four of its businesses – the corporate bank, investment bank, private bank and asset management – are “progressing on their strategic plans,” putting it on track for the year. Its current guidance states revenue of around 32 billion euros.
Adidas shares shed 3% in the first hours of trading following the confirmation of its preliminary results.
Elsewhere, Nokia stocks tumbled 4.5% on Wednesday as investors reacted to news Tuesday that chipmaker Nvidia is taking a $1 billion stake in the Finnish networking firm, forming a strategic partnership to develop next-generation 6G cellular technology.
Trade tensions between the U.S. and China appear to be abating ahead of President Donald Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday. Trump said Wednesday that he expects to lower fentanyl-linked tariffs on China ahead of the meeting.
It’s a busy day for earnings in Europe on Thursday with Airbus, UBS, Banco Santander, Equinor, Deutsche Bank, BASF, Adidas, GSK and Endesa set to report. Data releases include Spanish GDP.
— CNBC’s Sam Meredith, Steve Liesman and Sarah Min contributed to this market report.
