The European stock markets closed mostly lower in Wednesday trading as investors parsed US President Donald Trump's Tuesday night speech at the UN, and look ahead to the meeting between Trump and China President Xi Jinping.
The Stoxx Europe fell 0.3%, Germany's DAX lost 0.6%, France's CAC declined 0.3%, the Swiss Market Index dropped 0.2%, while the FTSE 100 edged 0.1% higher.
The seasonally adjusted S&P Global Flash Eurozone Composite PMI Output Index rose to 53.1 in September from 52.0 in August, marking the third straight month business activity has expanded in the eurozone and the fastest rate in more than three years.
"It's no surprise to see inflationary pressures on the rise again in September, given the increase in energy prices emanating from the ongoing conflict in the Middle East," Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said. "But more encouraging is the resilience of economic growth being reported."
In corporate news, UBS was dealt a blow after the upper house of the Swiss parliament backed capitalization requirements largely in line with government demands, news outlets reported Wednesday.
Under the plan, the lender must back 90% of its foreign units with the highest-quality capital, a plan which UBS opposed, Bloomberg said. The bill must now be considered by the lower house of parliament. UBS Group said the decision would be "excessive" if confirmed at the conclusion of the ongoing parliamentary process.
"This political outcome is not a compromise and fails to address the root causes of the Credit Suisse collapse," UBS said. "It disregards the serious concerns expressed by the overwhelming majority of respondents in the democratic consultation process, which included all business representatives, the relevant employee associations and most cantons."
Shares of the Swiss lender dropped 1.4% in Zurich.
Novo Nordisk has won approval from Singapore authorities for the use of its weight-loss drug, Wegovy, to treat certain liver diseases, the drugmaker said Wednesday.
Wegovy, a once-weekly injectable semaglutide, can be prescribed to treat adult patients with non-cirrhotic metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, or moderate to advanced liver fibrosis, as a complement to dieting and exercise, the company said.
The Singapore Health Sciences Authority approved Wegovy for treatment of fatty liver disease based on the interim week 72 efficacy analysis of a phase 3 trial, Novo said.
Shares of the Danish pharmaceutical company fell 2.5% in Copenhagen.
Ryanair will continue to cut flight frequencies in an effort to avoid exposure to unhedged fuel prices during the slow winter months, Bloomberg reported Wednesday.
Chief Executive Michael O'Leary told a press conference that the carrier might shift capacity to markets with lower fees such as Italy and Scandinavia, as he criticized the UK's "visitor taxes," saying the higher costs discouraged tourism and were "stupid and doomed to fail," Bloomberg reported.
Ryanair did not immediately respond to' request for comment.
Shares of the Irish airline lost 1.3% in Dublin.
TotalEnergies said it will develop the Ima gas field offshore Nigeria in partnership with AMNI.
TotalEnergies will hold a 40% stake in the shallow-water development, while the Nigerian enterprise AMNI owns the remaining 60%. No other terms were provided.
TotalEnergies said it expects the Ima field to start production in 2028, targeting a plateau of 350 million cubic feet per day, or 60,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. The Ima field will feed gas through a pipeline to Nigeria LNG, a gas liquefaction facility 15% owned by TotalEnergies.
Shares of the French oil and gas company advanced 2% in Paris.
Diageo said it has named Joanne Wilson as its next chief financial officer, with Wilson expected to join the company and its board and succeed Nik Jhangiani in 2027.
Wilson currently serves as CFO of communications company WPP and previously held senior finance and commercial roles at Britvic, Dunnhumby, Tesco and KPMG, according to Diageo. Diageo said Jhangiani will remain with the company to help with the transition.
Shares of the alcoholic beverage company declined close to 1% in London.