[MARKET ANALYSIS] European equities shrug off the selloff seen stateside; Tech rebounds while basic resources lag

• European bourses are trading mixed as the end of the week nears. SMI (+0.6%) leads its European peers, closely followed by the AEX (+0.5%). On the other hand, the CAC 40 (-0.2%) is the slight laggard following a mixed bag of earnings coming out of France. On the data front, Swiss inflation showed further deflation in January while the Y/Y figure printed in line with expectations at 0.1%. CHF is currently trading weaker.
• Sectors are mixed. Technology (+1.3%) sits comfortably at the top of the pile, followed by insurance (+0.6%) and industrial goods and services (+0.5%). Upside in tech follows on from the earnings by Applied Materials, which posted positive earnings and Q2 forecasts. Industrial goods and services have rebounded following the selloff in the US, which saw Kuehne+Nagel and DSV post huge losses (-13.6% and -11% respectively). Sitting at the bottom lies basic resources (-1.3%), as miners react to the selloff in metals prices, while consumer products and services (-0.7%) is weighed on by L'Oreal shares.
• Movers include L'Oreal (-3.2%), Safran (+7.3%) and Capgemini (+3.3%). L'Oreal is weighing on the CAC 40 after it missed on Q4 LFL sales, with its consumer products and luxe components missing estimates. At the top end, Safran beat top line and bottom line metrics by a large margin while Capgemini sees 2026 revenue growth better than analysts forecasted (6.5-8.5% vs exp. 7.2%). A special mention to Ubisoft (+11.9%), after the Co. beat Q3 net bookings that beat market estimates. However, on a monthly view, UBI FP shares is still down 27.2%.
• US equity futures (NQ +0.1%, ES & RTY U/C) hold steady following Thursday's selloff caused by further worries of AI disruption, this time in the logistics sector (CH Robinson Worldwide -14.5% by market close). Markets are awaiting US CPI.

European equities are navigating a mixed landscape, with a notable rebound in technology stocks driven by positive earnings from Applied Materials. Meanwhile, basic resources are under pressure due to declining metals prices, reflecting broader market sentiment following a selloff in the US. This suggests a divergence in sector performance across regions, which could influence trading strategies into next week's data releases, notably the US CPI.