European stocks gave up initial gains to turn lower on Thursday as a slew of disappointing regional data rekindled worries about slowing growth. <\/p>\n
Data from the federal statistics office showed that German exports fell 1.2 percent in August from the previous month, compared with a 0.4 percent decline forecast by analysts and a downward-revised 1.9 percent fall in July.<\/p>\n
Germany’s construction sector contracted more sharply in September amid a near-record fall in new work, according to S&P Global.<\/p>\n
Elsewhere, French industrial production fell in August from the previous month. Retail sales also came in weak, pointing to a weakening of the economy<\/span> in the third quarter.<\/p>\n Another survey showed that Britain’s construction industry experienced the biggest slide in activity in more than three years last month.<\/p>\n The pan-European STOXX 600 was little changed with a positive bias at 440.24 after closing 0.1 percent lower on Wednesday. <\/p>\n The German DAX slipped 0.2 percent and France’s CAC 40 dropped 0.3 percent while the U.K.’s FTSE was marginally higher. <\/p>\n In corporate news, jewelry retailer Pandora jumped over 9 percent after raising its growth targets. <\/p>\n RM Plc., a supplier of technology<\/span> and resources to the education sector, rose about 1 percent in London after it has agreed to sell an additional portion of its Internet Protocol v4 addresses to Hilco Streambank, an intellectual property advisory firm, for $2.2 million in cash.<\/p>\n Imperial Brands jumped 3.5 percent. The maker of John Player Special cigarettes reaffirmed its forecast and announced a $1.3 bln share buyback.<\/p>\n Thales Group shares fell around 1 percent in Paris. The defense equipment maker has signed a contract with Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa, a Polish arms holding company, to deliver multiple combat systems for the Polish Navy.<\/p>\n Alstom shares plunged 37 percent after the train manufacturer slashed its free cash flow target due to a ramp-up in production and delays in some orders.<\/p>\n SMA Solar Technology shares soared 14 percent. The German solar energy equipment supplier raised its guidance for the full year 2023, citing a very positive revenue and earnings development in the Large Scale & Project Solutions and Commercial & Industrial Solutions segments.<\/p>\n Wind turbine maker Nordex SE rose 1.2 after bagging an order for 45 MW wind turbines from Enerfin, a renewable energy unit of Spanish engineering company, Elecnor Group. <\/p>\n