European Shares Hit Two-Week Low Amid Broad Market Concerns

On Wednesday, European shares reached a two-week low as tensions around high equity valuations influenced investors globally. Adding to the downtrend, Novo Nordisk experienced a decline following an unfavourable forecast from the drugmaker.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index saw a decrease of 0.4% to 568.10 by 0811 GMT, marking levels not observed since October 17 for the second session in a row. Leading the sectoral declines were technology stocks, down by 1.3%, while traditionally safe-haven stocks such as food and beverage saw marginal increases.

This week reignited valuation worries on Wall Street and across Asian markets, which have seen record-breaking performances fueled largely by artificial intelligence excitement. U.S. bank comments on Tuesday added to the concerns. Meanwhile, earnings reports also drew significant attention across Europe.

In volatile trading, Novo Nordisk dropped 2% after the company lowered its full-year profit forecast, posing an early challenge to its new CEO amidst substantial restructuring efforts in the competitive obesity drug sector. Ambu plummeted 12% post quarterly results that fell short of consensus, whereas Vestas reported third-quarter operating profits above expectations, boosting its shares by 10%.