European shares extend gains as traders digest mixed earnings

European shares advanced on Thursday as investors assessed mixed earnings from companies in the region, although semiconductor stocks saw a heavy selloff after Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC delivered a downbeat sales forecast, reports Reuters.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.3 per cent by 0817 GMT after a subdued open.
The index extended gains for a third session, supported by upbeat corporate earnings and signs of a sharp slowdown in British consumer inflation that added to hopes global price pressures eased.
UK's blue-chip FTSE 100 was at a one-month high, with Anglo American up 5.3 per cent and at the top of the index after the global miner's first-half copper production surged 42 per cent.
"It seems like a lot of people have taken the weakening CPI as a cue to start buying UK markets again," said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG Group.
On the flip side, disappointing results from big US names Netflix and Tesla kept markets on edge, with their Frankfurt-listed shares falling 7.7 per cent and 3.8 per cent, respectively.
The technology sub-index, which gained nearly 23 per cent so far this year, was the biggest sectoral loser in Europe with a 2 per cent drop.
Semiconductor firms including ASML, ASM International and Aixtron fell between 3 per cent and 5.3 per cent after TSMC forecast a drop in 2023 sales with global economic woes denting demand for chips.
"They (European chipmakers) have done incredibly well so they're struggling to find more upside from here. If we can see demand picking up from a lot of computer makers that could give the sector a bit of lift," said Beauchamp.
Second-quarter earnings for STOXX 600 companies are expected to fall 9.2 per cent from the previous year, based on Refinitiv IBES data.
Saab climbed 3.5 per cent after the Swedish defence group raised its organic sales growth forecast, while Norwegian telecoms operator Telenor (TEL.OL) gained 5.1 per cent after reporting second-quarter earnings slightly above expectations.
Shares of Volvo Cars (VOLCARb.ST) dropped 2.5 per cent after the carmaker posted a 54 per cent fall in its second-quarter operating earnings.
Investor focus is also on key central bank meetings due next week, with traders expecting the European Central Bank to deliver a 25-basis-point rate hike.
Among other stocks, Electrolux dropped 14.6 per cent to the bottom of the STOXX 600 after Europe's biggest home appliances maker swung to a loss in the second quarter, followed by a 10 per cent drop in Essity after its second-quarter core earnings missed estimates.