European markets began the new week and month with a positive, albeit cautious, tone on Monday, as investors digested a strong earnings report from Ryanair ahead of a pivotal week for central bank decisions.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index opened just above the flatline. Shortly after the start of trading, the UK’s FTSE 100 was up 0.3% and Germany’s DAX had risen 0.1%.
However, the gains were not universal, with France’s CAC 40 and Italy’s FTSE MIB dipping 0.2% and 0.1% respectively.
Ryanair kicks off a packed week of earnings with profit surge
The corporate earnings calendar is a primary focus, and low-cost airline Ryanair provided a strong start.
The carrier reported after-tax profits of 2.54 billion euros for the first half of the year, a 42% increase that was in line with analyst estimates. First-half revenues also climbed 13% to 9.82 billion euros.
The report is the first in a busy week for European corporate results, with major companies including BP, Ferrari, and Aramco reporting on Tuesday, followed by BMW and Vestas on Wednesday, and AstraZeneca and Maersk on Thursday.
Central banks in focus as BoE decision looms
Monetary policy will also be a key driver of market sentiment this week. Sweden’s Riksbank is set to announce its latest rate decision on Wednesday.
The main event, however, will be the Bank of England’s policy announcement on Thursday, where economists are split on whether the central bank will hold interest rates steady or implement a cut.
While European markets started on a positive footing, investors were also assessing a more downbeat picture from Asia, where fresh data pointed to a continuing slowdown in China’s manufacturing sector.
The private RatingDog purchasing managers’ index for October fell to 50.6, missing expectations and dropping from September’s reading.
This followed the official government PMI data released last Friday, which showed factory activity contracting to a six-month low of 49.0, weighing on regional sentiment and providing a cautious backdrop for global investors.
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