European stocks slipped for a seventh consecutive session Thursday, their longest losing streak since September 2023, as rising oil prices revived inflation concerns and placed fresh pressure on travel, retail and other fuel-sensitive businesses.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed 0.12% lower at 650.35. The daily decline was small, but the uninterrupted run of losses points to a broader change in investor confidence after European shares approached record highs earlier this month.

Brent crude climbed more than 2% and moved above $90 a barrel as stalled U.S.-Iran negotiations and continued Middle East instability raised concerns about energy supplies. Higher oil prices benefit producers, but they also increase transportation, manufacturing and heating costs across a European economy that remains especially exposed to imported energy.

Energy stocks gained about 0.9%, while travel and leisure shares fell 0.7%. France’s CAC 40 declined 0.6%, hurt by weakness in luxury companies including LVMH and Kering. Germany’s DAX also finished lower, while Britain’s FTSE 100 was roughly flat.

Fresh German data added to the concern, showing producer prices rising at their fastest pace in more than three years as energy and goods costs increased. That creates a difficult calculation for the European Central Bank: slowing economic activity would normally support lower interest rates, but another inflation wave could prevent policymakers from providing relief.

JD Sports Fashion became one of the day’s largest corporate casualties, plunging more than 14% after cutting its profit outlook because of weaker North American sales. Danish biotechnology company Novonesis moved sharply in the opposite direction, gaining nearly 10% following strong results and a share-buyback announcement.

Europe’s decline remains modest in percentage terms, and the Stoxx 600 is still up for the year. The warning is in the consistency: investors have now sold the market for seven straight sessions as expensive energy, elevated borrowing costs and weaker corporate guidance begin pressing against the continent’s previously resilient earnings outlook.

JBizNews Desk | London

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