Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 4, 2026
3 min readLast updated: February 4, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleEuropean stocks are flat as Novo Nordisk's forecast impacts the market, offset by energy gains. Investors await eurozone inflation data.
By Avinash P, Johann M Cherian and Ragini Mathur
Feb 4 (Reuters) - European shares closed at a record high on Wednesday, though the gains were modest as a telecom sector rally and strength in consumer stocks offset weakness in software companies and a selloff triggered by healthcare company Novo Nordisk's disappointing outlook.
The pan-European STOXX 600 finished up 0.03% at 618.12 points, building on the previous session's record close as European markets recovered from earlier losses.
The telecom sub-index climbed 3.6% to an eight-year high.
The chemical sub-index gained 4.8% and was on track for its biggest daily surge since March 2022.
Shares of GSK gained 6.9%, hitting a 25-year high after new CEO Luke Miels said the British drugmaker will aim to lift sales growth and speed up work on new medicines in its next phase of growth.
"The first set of results under new GSK boss Luke Miels can hardly be said to have made much of a splash, but that may be no bad thing as far as he’s concerned ... the numbers are solid enough even if earnings were a touch off expectations," said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell.
The healthcare sub-index was lower, though, down 0.3% as Novo Nordisk shares weighed.
The Danish drugmaker tumbled 17.2%, wiping off around $50 billion from the Wegovy maker's market capitalization after it warned its sales and profits would fall in 2026.
Denmark's stock index slid 6.7%, marking its steepest one-day fall since July 2025.
SOFTWARE STOCKS ROUT CONTINUES
Investors were also evaluating the potential repercussions of AI developer Anthropic's launch of plug-ins for its Claude Cowork that analysts said could disrupt the software business worldwide.
Tech and media stocks fell 2.5% and 0.7%, respectively, adding to their steep declines on Tuesday.
"There is a lot of uncertainty around exactly what AI agents can do, and as such, investors are choosing to shun the software market altogether, leaving nowhere to hide," said Ben Barringer, head of technology research at Quilter Cheviot.
It was also a big day for bank earnings reports across the continent, with the banks' sub-index dropping 1.2%
UBS reported outflows from its U.S. wealth management business on Wednesday and warned there were more to come after losing some relationship managers. Its shares dropped 6.3% despite beating quarterly profit forecasts.
Europe's biggest lender Santander fell 3.5% after the Spanish bank said it would buy U.S. regional lender Webster Financial in a $12.2 billion deal.
Among other movers, shares in Beazley rose 6.9% to a record high as the British insurer agreed to terms of a sweetened 8-billion-pound ($10.97 billion) takeover proposal from Swiss firm Zurich Insurance. Zurich was also up 3.5%.
($1 = 0.7292 pounds)
(Reporting by Avinash P, Johann M Cherian and Ragini Mathur in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Shinjini Ganguli, Rod Nickel)
Inflation is the rate at which the general level of prices for goods and services rises, eroding purchasing power. It is typically measured as an annual percentage increase.
The STOXX 600 is a stock index that represents the performance of 600 large, mid, and small-cap companies across 17 European countries, serving as a benchmark for European equity markets.
The energy sector includes companies involved in the production and sale of energy, including oil, gas, and renewable energy sources. It plays a crucial role in the global economy.
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