12:05 PM EDT, 08/21/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The European stock markets closed mostly higher in Wednesday trading as The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.32%, France's CAC was up 0.52%, the FTSE in London increased 0.12%, Germany's DAX gained 0.51%, while the Swiss Market Index was off 0.13%.

The UK Competition and Markets Authority said Wednesday that it has closed its investigation into Alphabet's Google unit's suspected anti-competitive conduct, saying in a statement that the case "no longer constitutes an administrative priority." The CMA said the probe was opened in 2022 over suspected violations by Google of certain competition laws related to its distribution of native applications on Android devices in the UK.

The CMA also said Wednesday that it closed its investigation into Apple regarding the distribution of apps on iOS and iPadOS devices in the UK, specifically, the terms and conditions that app developers must adhere to when accessing Apple's App Store. The probe was launched in March 2021.

In corporate news, European automaker Stellantis' chief executive officer Carlos Tavares plans to visit Detroit in an effort to turn around the company's North American operations, which have struggled with poor sales and declining profit, Reuters reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the plans. Stellantis did not immediately reply to MT Newswires' request for comment. Shares closed 1% higher in Paris.

Brookfield Asset Management is seeking debt financing from banks totaling nearly 9.5 billion euros ($10.6 billion) for a potential deal to take private Spanish life-science firm Grifols, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing people with knowledge of the matter. Brookfield and Grifols did not immediately reply to MT Newswires' requests for comment. Shares of Grifols closed 3.9% higher in Madrid.

UK consumer goods giant Unilever said Wednesday that it is recalling approximately 137,000 cases of Popsicle Jolly Rancher Frozen Confection Pops in the US due to possible undeclared milk content in the ingredients, which could be dangerous for people with milk allergies.