European share close at record high

The pan-European STOXX 600 finished up 0.03% at 618.12 points, building on the previous session’s record close as European markets recovered from earlier losses

European shares closed at a record high on Wednesday, though the gains were modest as a telecom sector rally and strength in consumer stocks offset weakness in software companies and a selloff triggered by healthcare company Novo Nordisk’s disappointing outlook.

The pan-European STOXX 600 finished up 0.03% at 618.12 points, building on the previous session’s record close as European markets recovered from earlier losses.

The telecom sub-index jumped 3.6% to an eight-year high.

The chemical sub-index added 4.8% and was on track for its biggest daily surge since March 2022.

Shares of GSK added 6.9%, hitting a 25-year high after new CEO Luke Miels said the British drugmaker will aim to lift sales growth and speed up work on new medicines in its next phase of growth.

The first set of results under new GSK boss Luke Miels can hardly be said to have made much of a splash, but that may be no bad thing as far as he’s concerned. The numbers are solid enough even if earnings were a touch off expectations, said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell.

The healthcare sub-index was lower, though, down 0.3% as Novo Nordisk shares weighed.

The Danish drugmaker tumbled 17.2%, wiping off nearly $50 billion from the Wegovy maker’s market cap after it warned its sales and profits would drop in 2026.

Denmark’s stock index slipped 6.7%, marking its sharpest one-day decline since July 2025.

Investors were also evaluating the potential repercussions of AI developer Anthropic’s launch of plug-ins for its Claude Cowork that analysts said could disrupt the software business worldwide.

Tech and media stocks dropped 2.5% and 0.7%, respectively, adding to their steep declines on Tuesday.