Save from as low as €40 per month Change modify pause
Roundup
European Marketd closed mixed on Wednesday after a series of companies released their earnings reports before the bell, including Siemens, Santander, ArcelorMittal and ING. German statistical office Destatis reported a 1.9% fall in retail sales, while Eurostat reported euro inflation was down to 1.3% in January and unemployment rate stood at 8.7% in December.
The Dax ended the trading day 0.12% in the red. Steel producer Thyssenkrupp AG led the losses with a 1.40% decline. The FTSE 100 went down 0.81% at the close. The CAC 40 finished 0.10% higher, with Airbus SE rising 3.00%.
Apple Admits
Apple Inc confirmed on Wednesday that it's currently under investigation by the United States Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission over the company's practice to slow down older iPhones with software updates. The company admitted receiving questions from government agencies. However, the tech giant reiterated that it has never, "and would never do anything to intentionally shorten the life of any Apple product, or degrade the user experience to drive customer upgrades."
This can be viewed in contrast to the statement the company issued late in December, where it apologized and acknowledged that slowing down older phones was done to lengthen their battery life. Following the controversy, Apple cut prices of out-of-warranty batteries for its iPhone 6 models and announced a software feature that would allow users more battery management options.
Oily corner
Crude prices traded in the red on Wednesday after investor confidence was shaken following the release of the worse-than-expected data published by the Energy Information Administration. The report stated that the United States oil inventories increased by 6.8 million barrels, signifying a strong rise in American crude production. The figure marked the biggest growth in US oil stocks in five years.
However, OPEC and other major oil producers’ efforts continued to offset the negative effects on oil prices amid continuous compliance with the output cut deal. The organization and other non-OPEC members led by Russia agreed to cap the global production by 1.8 million barrels per day until the end of 2018.
You are signing up to receive news, updates, general market announcement, articles and product or service marketing. By signing up you are consenting to our privacy policy and can unsubscribe at any time.