European shares end best week since June as strong earnings lift sentiment

European shares ended a best week since June on November 13, buoyed by strong earnings and a rotation out of tech globally, moving past geopolitical risks and artificial intelligence stock volatility. The Stoxx 600 index closed flat at 664.14 points, with gains of over 2 percent for the week. The Euro Stoxx banks index climbed more than 4 percent this week, leading broader gains.

Robust earnings, coupled with lower oil prices due to hopes of easing the US-Iran conflict earlier in the week, helped the Stoxx 600 breach record-high levels for the first time since August on Thursday. Analysts pointed to structural tailwinds that could boost Europe's prospects in the long term, such as Europe's rearmament program, industrial program, strategic autonomy, energy infrastructure, and defense.

Jitania Kandhari, deputy CIO at Morgan Stanley Investment Management, noted that improved investment in capex would have spillover effects on various parts of the economy and the markets. The tech sector fell 1.3 percent on Friday, mirroring investor uncertainty over the outlook for the AI trade following Jensen Huang's resignation as Nvidia's CEO.

Chip stocks including Infineon and Aixtron dropped more than 4 percent each, while AI equipment makers like Schneider Electric and Legrand were also down. Corporate earnings data on Friday added to caution, with Wise Group rising 7.7 percent after reporting a 23 percent net revenue increase in the first half of its fiscal year, while Richemont fell 3.8 percent after reporting weaker-than-expected sales in its jewelry unit during the second quarter.

Acciona declined 8 percent as it fell short of its 2 billion euro asset rotation target. Eurozone GDP grew by 0.4 percent quarter-on-quarter in Q3, according to a flash estimate from the EU's statistics agency.