European markets close lower as corporate earnings remain in focus

European markets closed lower on Wednesday, with traders monitoring regional corporate earnings releases and awaiting the U.S. Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy announcement.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed down 0.5% provisionally, with retail stocks down 2.2%, leading the losses.

Europe’s pharmaceuticals industry is still reeling from U.S. President Donald Trump’s Monday announcement that tariffs for the sector would be announced within the next two weeks.

Shares of Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk bucked the sectoral trend to gain 1.3%, after the company’s first-quarter earnings came in above expectations. The firm cut its 2025 guidance, however, citing weakening demand for its blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy.

Investors also monitored earnings releases from Ørsted, Pandora, Veolia, Legrand, BMW, Siemens Healthineers, Fresenius, Skanska B, JD Wetherspoon, Vonovia, Delhaize and Telecom Italia on Wednesday.

Across the Atlantic, the Fed’s interest rate decision is due at 2 p.m. ET. Fed funds futures trading suggests just a 3.1% chance of the central bank cutting interest rates this meeting, according to CME’s FedWatch tool. Traders will nevertheless be listening for Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s comments after the announcement for insights into the path of rates and state of the economy.