European stocks fall on weak commodities, mixed corporate ‎earnings

European shares fell on Friday, weighed by weak commodity prices and mixed corporate earnings, as investors weighed the path to tighten monetary policy amid a slowdown in economic growth.

According to “Reuters”, the European Stoxx 600 index fell 0.9% by 0719 GMT, and mining companies led losses with the decline in commodity prices amid concerns about the expansion of Covid-19 restrictions in China.

The index closed little changed on Thursday after the European Central Bank raised interest rates as expected, but said it had already made “substantial” progress in trying to stem the historic rise in inflation.

Shares of technology companies in Europe fell 2.1%, as the series of disappointing results for its counterparts on Wall Street seem to continue after weak expectations from Amazon.

Volkswagen shares fell 2.4% after Europe’s largest carmaker said it expected deliveries to be close to last year’s levels and reported profits below pre-pandemic levels in the third quarter of 4.3 billion euros ($4.28 million).

Danone’s stock rose 1.3% after it raised its revenue growth forecast for 2022, as the French food group managed to raise prices to meet rising costs.