European stocks firm at open, energy sector gains erase tech ‎losses ‎

European stocks witnessed stability in the beginning of trading on Friday, as the decline in technology stocks, following the pessimistic expectations of the software company SAP, squandered the gains of energy companies that track the impact of high oil prices.

According to “Reuters”, the European Stoxx 600 index settled at 463.72 points by 0707 GMT, and is heading to record slight gains of 0.6 percent during the week.

Technology shares in Europe fell 1.6%. This sector is indeed the biggest loser among the main sectors for this week

As for energy companies, they increased 0.7 percent, supported by high oil prices, as investors evaluated the possibilities of announcing more stimulus measures in China.

Shares of the Swedish steelmaker SSAB tumbled 13.4% to the bottom of the Stoxx 600 index after results showed a larger-than-expected drop in its quarterly profits, while Swiss pharmaceutical company Lonza fell 7% after it cut its full-year forecast.