European Equities: A Quiet Economic Calendar Leaves Geopolitics in Focus

The Majors

It was a bearish day for the European majors on Friday. The CAC40 slid by 1.27%, with the EuroStoxx600 and the DAX declining by 0.59% and 0.42% respectively.

From the Eurozone, there were no major stats for the markets to consider during the European session. A lack of stats left markets to react further to the U.S inflation figures on Thursday that left the U.S markets in the deep red. Late in the European session, consumer sentiment figures from the U.S also drew interest, however.

Away from the economic calendar, news updates on Russia and the Ukraine were also market negative.

The Stats

There were no material stats from the Eurozone to provide the markets with direction.

From the U.S

Consumer sentiment figures for February were in focus late in the European session.

The Michigan Consumer Expectations Index fell from 64.1 to 57.4, with the Sentiment Index sliding from 67.2 to 61.7.

The Market Movers

For the DAX: It was a mixed day for the auto sector on Friday. Daimler rallied by 6.72%, with BMW and Volkswagen rising by 2.53% and by 0.73% respectively. Continental bucked the trend, however, falling by 2.88%.

It was a bearish day for the banks. Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank ended the day down by 0.88% and by 2.07% respectively.

From the CAC, it was a bearish day for the banks. BNP Paribas and Soc Gen slid by 2.49% and by 2.20% respectively. Credit Agricole ended the day with a 0.69% loss.

The French auto sector also had a bearish session. Stellantis NV declined by 1.12%, with Renault falling by 1.53%.

Air France-KLM slid by 2.60%, while Airbus SE ended the day up by 0.17%.

On the VIX Index

It was a second consecutive day in the green for the VIX on the Friday.

Following a 19.79% jump on Thursday, the VIX rose by 14.43% to end the day at 27.36.

The NASDAQ slid by 2.78%, with the Dow and the S&P500 seeing losses of 1.43% and 1.90% respectively.