European Stocks Fall in Thursday Trading; European Central Bank, Bank of England Hold Rates Steady

12:16 PM EST, 02/05/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The European stock markets were tracking lower in Thursday trading as The Stoxx Europe fell 1.1%, Germany's DAX dropped 0.5%, the FTSE 100 lost 0.9%, France's CAC was down 0.3%, and the Swiss Market Index declined 0.3%.

The European Central Bank decided to keep its three key interest rates unchanged. The interest rates on the deposit facility, the main refinancing operations and the marginal lending facility will remain at 2.00%, 2.15%, and 2.40% respectively.

The Bank also reiterated its assessment that inflation should stabilize at its 2% target in the medium term.

"The economy remains resilient in a challenging global environment," the Bank said in a statement. "At the same time, the outlook is still uncertain, owing particularly to ongoing global trade policy uncertainty and geopolitical tensions."

Meanwhile, the Bank of England's monetary policy committee voted by a slim majority of 5-4 to maintain the bank rate at 3.75%. The four dissenting members voted to reduce the rate to 3.5%.

"Although above the 2% target currently, CPI inflation is expected to fall back to around the target from April," the Bank of England said in a statement. "The risk from greater inflation persistence has continued to become less pronounced, while some risks to inflation from weaker demand and a loosening labor market remain."

In corporate news, Rio Tinto said Thursday in a UK regulatory filing that it is no longer considering a possible merger with Glencore because it "determined that it could not reach an agreement that would deliver value to its customers."

Glencore said in a separate UK regulatory filing that "the key terms of the potential offer were Rio Tinto retaining both the chairman and chief executive officer roles and delivering a proforma ownership of the combined company which, in our view, significantly undervalued Glencore's underlying relative value contribution to the combined group, even before consideration of a suitable acquisition control premium."

Rio Tinto and Glencore's shares declined 3% and 7% respectively.

Novo Nordisk said Thursday it plans to pursue legal and regulatory action after Hims & Hers Health announced plans to market compounded versions of Novo's Wegovy pill.

The drugmaker alleged the move amounts to illegal mass compounding and poses risks to patient safety, noting that compounded semaglutide products are not approved by the US Food and Drug Administration and may contain impurities, unnecessary additives, and untested doses.

Novo Nordisk said it is the sole manufacturer of an FDA-approved oral semaglutide product incorporating its proprietary SNAC technology.

Hims & Hers did not immediately respond to a request for comment from MT Newswires.

Shares of the Danish pharmaceutical company lost nearly 8% in Copenhagen.

TotalEnergies said Thursday that it has signed two clean firm power contracts to supply 3.3 TWh to all major Airbus sites in Germany and the UK.

The company said that the electricity supplied to Airbus will come from new renewable assets with a capacity of 200 MW and will cover half of the electricity needs of the sites concerned, starting 2027.

Shares of the French oil and gas company were down 1% in Paris.

Vodafone Group reported fiscal Q3 operating profit Thursday of 483 million euros ($569.5 million), down from 1.02 billion euros a year earlier.

Revenue for the quarter ended Dec. 31 was 10.45 billion euros, up from 9.81 billion euros a year earlier. Two analysts surveyed by FactSet expected 10.63 billion euros.

Shares of the British telecommunications operator dropped 5% in London.

Shell reported Q4 adjusted earnings Thursday of $0.57 per diluted share, down from $0.60 a year earlier. Analysts polled by FactSet expected $0.62.

Revenue for the quarter ended Dec. 31 was $64.09 billion compared with $66.28 billion a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected $63.20 billion.

The company also introduced a $3.5 billion share repurchase plan, which is slated to be completed by the end of Q1.

Shares of Shell fell 3% in London.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria reported Q4 adjusted earnings Thursday of 0.43 euro ($0.51) per diluted share, up from 0.40 euro a year earlier. Four analysts polled by FactSet expected 0.43 euro.

Gross income for the quarter ended Dec. 31 was 9.80 billion euros, up from 9.32 billion euros a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected 9.56 billion euros.

Shares of the Spanish bank shed more than 8% in Madrid.

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