European markets inch higher as trading week begins; Philips shares tumble 17%

Stocks tied to the price of bitcoin jumped on Monday as the flagship cryptocurrency moved above $69,000, after briefly touching the level a week ago.

Crypto exchange operator Coinbase added 4%. Bitcoin price proxy MicroStrategy advanced more than 5%. Both companies are scheduled to report their quarterly earnings on Wednesday. Bitcoin miners Mara Holdings rose 6% and Riot Platforms gained 5%.

Bitcoin has been trying to reclaim the $70,000 level since hitting its record in March above $73,000. Earlier attempts this year have led to brief forays above $70,000, but it has not touched the level since June. Some say that could soon change with the U.S. presidential election drawing nearer.

— Tanaya Macheel

U.S. stocks began Monday’s trading session in the green.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 232 points, or 0.6%.

The S&P 500 rose 0.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.7%.

— Hakyung Kim

Retailers in the U.K. reported a decline in sales volumes in October, with some saying consumers were being cautious about spending spending ahead of the U.K. budget due later this week, according to the Confederation of British Industry.

Retail sales fell at a “modest pace,” the body’s monthly retail sales survey showed, with the headline balance coming in at -6 in October, compared to the +4 reading in September.

Sales are expected to be broadly flat next month, the CBI also said.

— Sophie Kiderlin

Volkswagen‘s works council said Monday that the auto giant is considering widespread pay cuts and layoffs as well as the closure or size reduction of its plants in Germany.

According to Daniela Cavallo, head of the works council, Volkswagen management recently presented plans to the council that included a 10% reduction in pay across the board, as well as wage freezes in 2025 and 2026. All factored in, the body estimates workers will suffer pay cuts of around 18% over the period.

Cavallo said Volkswagen also intends to shut three factories and downsize all other plants in Germany.

“In concrete terms, this means taking out even more products, volumes, shifts and entire assembly lines far beyond to what we have already done,” she said in a statement released Monday. “All German VW plants are affected by this. None of them are safe,” Cavallo added.

Read the full story here. Shares were down around 1% in early afternoon deals.

-Sophie Kiderlin

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was down 0.14% at 11 a.m. London time, reversing earlier gains with most regional bourses and sectors slipping into negative territory.

Oil prices lost 6% on Monday after Iranian energy facilities were not damaged during an Israeli attack over the weekend.

Futures for global crude benchmark Brent slid 6.13% to $71.39 per barrel at 10:10 a.m. London time, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures dropped 6.35% to $67.22 per barrel.

-Lee Ying Shan

The French CAC 40 index rose by more than 1% at one point on Monday and was last up 0.8% at 9:24 a.m. London time, as luxury stocks buoyed the index higher.

Gucci-owner Kering and Hermes were last around 2.6% and 2.1% higher respectively, recording the biggest gains of companies on the CAC 40 on Monday. LVMH meanwhile added close to 1.5%.

This comes amid a choppy time for luxury stocks, which have in recent weeks been reacting to a slew of news out of China — a key market for the sector — about the state of the country’s consumers and economy.

— Sophie Kiderlin

Shares in Dutch health product giant Philips tumbled in Europe deals early on Monday, after the company cut its full year sales outlook on weak demand from China.

After initially failing to begin trading when markets opened, Europe-traded shares of Philips fell as much as 15% and were last down 14.55% at 8:26 a.m. London time.

— Sophie Kiderlin

European markets were higher as trading began on Monday, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 last adding 0.24% at 8:15 a.m. London time.

Travel and leisure stocks were up around 1.1%, while oil and gas stocks lost 1.7%.

Regional bourses were also mostly higher with France’s CAC 40 adding 0.7% and Germany’s DAX rising 0.2%.

— Sophie Kiderlin