European shares were set to end a volatile week lower on Friday, as worries about elevated valuations of technology-related stocks globally lingered, while Britain's ITV jumped on talks to sell its broadcasting division.
The continent-wide STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) slipped 0.3% to 565.90 points by 0942 GMT. It was on track for its biggest two-week loss since early September, when sovereign debt worries and political uncertainty in France resurfaced.
While there was no specific reason for this week's selloff, analysts point to a myriad of factors, including elevated valuations in tech-related stocks, a U.S. government shutdown and hawkish Federal Reserve commentary.
Some investors have resorted to 'buying the dip' after this week's sell-off.
"Investors will be more discerning in terms of which AI names are still cash rich and which are expanding based on their balance sheets by taking leverage, or off-balance sheet agreements," said Lale Akoner, global market strategist at eToro.
"In terms of Europe we need to see stronger earnings growth to fill the market overall, and we think that especially the fiscal policy is making the fundamentals quite strong in my opinion."
Technology stocks (.SX8P) are among the top decliners on the week, while tech equipment makers such as Legrand (LEGD.PA), Schneider Electric (SCHN.PA) and Siemens Energy (ENR1n.DE) are set to log heavy losses.
On the other hand, beaten down auto stocks (.SXAP) have rallied on expectations that Nexperia would resume chip shipments from China.
On Friday, ITV <ITV.L> jumped 15.3% after saying that it was in talks with pay-TV company Sky, owned by Comcast <CMCSA.O>, over a potential sale of its media and entertainment unit for 1.6 billion pounds ($2.15 billion) including debt.
Investors also scrutinized a series of earnings updates to gauge the health of corporate Europe.
Rightmove (RMV.L) slumped 18% after Britain's biggest property portal forecast slower profit growth in 2026, weighed down by investments it expects to make, primarily in artificial intelligence.
IAG <ICAG.L> lost 8.6% after reporting quarterly results and cautioned about softness in the U.S. economy cabin offering.
Monte dei Paschi di Siena <BMPS.MI> gained 4.4% after the Italian lender posted a surprise rise in third-quarter profit.
Meanwhile, Novo Nordisk <NOVOb.CO> lost 1.7% after the drugmaker and peer Eli Lilly (LLY.N) struck a deal with the U.S. to slash the prices of popular GLP-1 weight‑loss drugs for the government's Medicare and Medicaid programs, as well as for cash payers.
