Investing.com - European stock markets rose on Wednesday, as investors looked ahead to earnings from artificial intelligence chipmaker Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) and gauged the prospects of a Ukrainian minerals deal with the U.S.
Investors are gearing up for results from Nvidia after the closing bell on Wall Street. The figures and remarks from executives at the company could provide insight into the path ahead for spending on the nascent technology following the recent emergence of an open-source AI model from Chinese start-up DeepSeek.
Sentiment was also boosted by reports of a draft minerals agreement between the U.S. and Ukraine, which has been viewed as a crucial pillar of Kyiv’s drive secure Washington’s support as President Donald Trump attempts to an end to the war with Russia.
As part of negotiations centered around halting the three-year-old conflict with Russia, Ukraine and the Trump administration have been in talks over granting the U.S. access to its cache of rare earth minerals. According to a Reuters report, the draft deal includes a statement from the U.S. that it wants Ukraine to be "free, sovereign and secure," although it does specify any American security guarantees.
Media reports said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is expected to travel to Washington in the coming days.
An index tracking basic resources stocks in Europe rose, along with a measure of luxury firms on the continent. Europe’s aerospace and defense index also moved up to near an all-time peak.
By 08:09 ET (13:09 GMT), the Stoxx 600 had climbed by about 1.0% to 559.62. The pan-European index has risen by roughly 10% so far this year, well outpacing the benchmark S&P 500.
Meanwhile, Germany’s DAX advanced by 1.87%, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 gained 0.6%, and France’s CAC 40 was up 1.3%.
In individual stocks, automaker Stellantis (BIT:STLAM) reported a sharp decline in full-year net profit, falling to 5.5 billion euros from 18.6 billion euros in 2023. Milan-listed shares were down by 4.8% in early afternoon dealmaking.
Deutsche Telekom (ETR:DTEGn) shares also dropped after the group posted disappointing annual results and an underwhelming 2025 outlook.
(Navamya Acharya contributed reporting.)