- Barry Callebaut falls after another forecast cut
- Kemira falls after Q2 miss, 2025 outlook cut
- Britain's FTSE 100 and Germany's DAX hits record high
July 10 (Reuters) - European shares rose on Thursday, buoyed by signs of progress on a potential trade deal between the United States and the European Union.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.6% at 553.14 points, as of 0850 GMT.
The UK's FTSE 100 touched a fresh record high and was last up 1.1%. Germany's DAX also hit a record high and was last up 0.2%. The index is outperforming the STOXX 600 year-to-date so far. France's CAC 40 rose 0.7%, while Spain's IBEX lost 0.6%.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU is working "non-stop" to reach a low-tariff trade agreement with the U.S.
EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic said on Wednesday that good progress has been made on a framework trade agreement, and a deal may be possible within days.
The negotiators are also discussing potential measures to protect the EU auto industry, according to officials and auto industry sources.
Some European carmakers edged higher, with Mercedes-Benz up 1.1%. Porsche and Volkswagen gained 1.2% each.
"The markets are reacting incredibly positively to it (EU-U.S. trade deal). We are in danger of considering it a done deal, there's a lot of work still to be done...the U.S. can shift the goal posts a little bit", said Nick Saunders, CEO of stock trading platform Webull UK.
U.S. President Donald Trump also announced a new 50% tariff on copper imports and a 50% duty on goods from Brazil on Wednesday, both effective August 1.
Trump issued new tariff letters for seven minor trading partners, adding to 14 others issued earlier in the week.
European mining stocks rose about 4%, leading gains on the benchmark, while healthcare gained 1%.
Miners Rio Tinto jumped 4.5% and Anglo American rose 5.3% after falling in the previous session.
Webull's Saunders said that gains in copper miners drove the FTSE 100 higher.
Among individual stocks, Barry Callebaut fell 14.5% to the bottom of the STOXX 600 index after the Swiss chocolate maker cut its volume outlook for the third time this year.
Kemira tumbled 4.4% after the Finnish chemical company posted weaker-than expected preliminary second-quarter results and lowered its 2025 outlook.
In contrast, Aalberts rose 4.4% after the Dutch industrial group agreed to acquire Grand Venture Technology .
Investors are now bracing for the second-quarter earnings season to assess how companies are navigating trade volatility.
Reporting by Sanchayaita Roy and Sukriti Gupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips
Source: Reuters