City workers in the La Defense commercial district on Thursday, October 9, 2025 in Paris, France.
Nathan Lane | Bloomberg | Getty Images
LONDON — European markets resumed their decline on Friday as volatility in U.S. tech stocks once again spilled over into the Atlantic.
By 10:48 a.m. London (5:48 a.m. ET), pan-European Stocks 600 fell 0.9%, with major exchanges and most sectors in negative territory.
Looking at individual stocks in Europe, Dutch semiconductor companies BE Semiconductor Chip equipment makers fell 7% in morning trading. ASMI and ASML They fell 5.8% and 7%, respectively.
The region’s STOXX European Technology Index was down 3.1% by mid-morning, trading at its lowest since Sept. 16.
Headlines about a possible peace deal in Ukraine have also influenced sentiment in Europe in recent days, with reports that the United States and Russia are secretly brokering a peace plan to end the war, potentially forcing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to make difficult choices.
News agency Reuters reported on Thursday that the peace plan would require Kiev to cede the entire Donbas region to Moscow and reduce its military.
President Zelenskiy has previously rejected the idea of his country giving up land to end the conflict, but said on Telegram Thursday night that he had been presented with a peace proposal by the U.S. delegation earlier in the day.
“From the first days of the war, we have supported a very simple position: Ukraine needs peace. Real peace comes with conditions that respect our independence, sovereignty and dignity of the Ukrainian people,” he said. “I explained the key principles, and we agreed that our team would work on these proposals and make sure everything was genuine.”
European defense stocks sold off Friday morning, with the STOXX European Aerospace and Defense Index (which was last trading 3.5% lower) having its worst day in months. Germany’s Lenk shares fell 9%. line metal and Hensoldt each fell more than 7%.
Meanwhile, investors around the world are also poring over Thursday’s long-delayed U.S. nonfarm payrolls report in hopes of gleaning some clues about the trajectory of U.S. monetary policy. Market expectations for a December interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve have fallen sharply in recent weeks, and the first jobs report since the U.S. government shutdown highlighted the complex state of the U.S. labor market.
