Global Market: European shares edge higher as miners, airlines offset tech weakness; benchmark set for weekly loss

European shares were little changed on Friday as gains in mining and travel stocks were largely offset by weakness in technology shares, while investors remained cautious amid renewed tensions in the Middle East, according to Reuters.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.2% at 642.42 by 0714 GMT. Despite the modest rise, the benchmark remained on course for a weekly decline, which would end a four-week winning streak.

Mining stocks led sectoral gains, climbing around 2% as investors rotated into commodity-linked shares. Travel and leisure stocks also advanced about 1%, supported by strength in airline shares.


Among individual stocks, UK-based airline EasyJet surged 13.4% after agreeing in principle to a £5.7 billion ($7.65 billion) takeover approach from Apollo Global.

Technology stocks, however, weighed on the broader market. Semiconductor-related shares came under pressure, with Siltronic falling 2%, Soitec declining 2.8%, and Dutch chip equipment maker ASML losing 2%.

The investors remained cautious ahead of South Korean memory chipmaker SK Hynix's U.S. market debut. Market participants are also assessing whether elevated valuations across artificial intelligence-related stocks could limit further upside for chipmakers and the broader semiconductor sector.

Geopolitical developments also kept investors on edge. Iranian forces attacked U.S. military infrastructure in Gulf states on Thursday, raising concerns that a three-week-old ceasefire is weakening. The renewed hostilities have added uncertainty to global markets and prompted investors to reassess risk exposure.

The combination of geopolitical uncertainty and weakness in technology shares kept overall gains in European equities limited, even as strength in miners and airlines provided some support to the regional benchmark.