European stock markets closed lower across the board on Friday, with Germany's DAX leading the declines as the global sell-off in technology shares spread across the continent.

The DAX fell 1.92 per cent to 25,820.37, wiping out its gain for the week. France's CAC 40 dropped 0.81 per cent to 8,139.01, Italy's FTSE MIB fell 0.90 per cent to 50,052.95, and Spain's IBEX 35 lost 0.60 per cent to 19,369.49. London's FTSE 100 closed 1.01 per cent lower at 10,673.93. The Euro STOXX 50 fell 0.98 per cent to 6,170.49.

A week of two halves

Despite Friday's falls, most European markets still ended the week ahead. The CAC 40 gained 2.13 per cent over the week, the IBEX 35 rose 3.84 per cent and the FTSE MIB added 1.12 per cent. The DAX finished the week unchanged, while the FTSE 100 was the only one of the five major benchmarks to end the week lower, down 0.52 per cent.

AI jitters after the US midterms

The sell-off was driven by worries about artificial intelligence investment after the Democrats' sweeping victory in the US midterm elections raised the prospect of tougher regulation of AI and delays to data-centre projects. The Nasdaq Composite had plunged 5.5 per cent on Thursday, its worst session since April 2025, and the Nasdaq 100 suffered its sharpest daily loss since the coronavirus crash, while the semiconductor index fell more than 12 per cent.

Bond yields fell across all five markets over the week. France led the move, with its 10-year yield down 21.6 basis points, narrowing the French-German spread by 14.3 basis points to about 151 basis points. By the European close, Wall Street was recovering, with the Nasdaq 100 up 1.82 per cent and the S&P 500 up 0.86 per cent, although the Dow was little changed.

Sources: InvestingLive; SKN Finance; ad-hoc-news / dpa-AFX.