[MARKET ANALYSIS] European bourses mostly lower, with Luxury hit after Richemont earnings

European bourses (STOXX 600 -0.2%) are broadly on the backfoot this morning, conforming to the mostly subdued action seen in the APAC session. Focus remains on the AI situation, following Huang’s resignation from Nvidia, with major tech names such as SK Hynix (-3%) and Samsung Electronics (-1%) falling in Korean trade. Over in China, the magnitudes are to a larger extent, with woes growing about the US potentially slapping China with more stringent chip-related bans. The likes of Tencent (-3%) slipped overnight, whilst smaller companies such as MiniMax (-8%) were also hit. European sectors are mixed. Energy tops the pile, with oil prices a little firmer today; Optimised Personal Care and Food Beverage & Tobacco complete the top three. To the downside resides Consumer Products (hit by Richemont post-earnings), whilst Basic Resources is pressured by the selling in underlying metals. Key Movers: Richemont (-6.9%, sales rose Y/Y but gold costs weighed on underlying gross margin), Generali (-1.3%, reported EUR 1.5bln disaster hit), Acciona (-6%, lifted 2026 EBITDA outlook but asset rotation missed target. Elsewhere, Bloomberg reported that its USD 1bln Mexico infrastructure deal is seen at risk). US equity futures are entirely in the red, following the sentiment set out in Europe. The NQ (-0.4%) remains the slight underperformer this morning vs ES (-0.1%), with focus still on the fallout from Huang’s resignation from Nvidia. However, shares are currently firmer by c. 1% in pre-market trade, finding some reprieve after recent selling pressure. Attention ahead will turn back to monetary policy with US PPI scheduled, and also a few Fed speakers.