Europe midday: Stoxx edges ahead as miners in favour

17th Aug 2026 11:22

(Sharecast News) - European shares were mixed to flat on Monday as investors eyed weak data out of China and Japan.

The pan-regional Stoxx 600 was up 0.13% to 658.7 at 1200 BST.

On the economics front, Japan's economy expanded by 1.1% in the second quarter on an annualised basis, missing expectations for 2% growth.

In China, a data dump revealed retail sales grew in July by a meagre 0.6% year on year, missing estimates of 1.5%.

Urban fixed-asset investment, including real estate and infrastructure, contracted by a worse-than-expected 6.7% while investment in real estate fell 19.2% in the first seven months of 2026.

Industrial output also missed estimates of 4.8% growth in July, coming in at 4.5%.

In equity news, Accelleron Industries jumped on a 'buy' rating from Berenberg from a 'hold', while ArgenX also surged following positive late-stage trial results for its autoimmune myositis drug.

Miners were in favour as gold prices rose on the back of a weaker dollar with Antofagasta, Hochschild Mining and Fresnillo all higher.

SIG Group slumped after replacing its CEO.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com