12:09 PM EST, 12/10/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The European stock markets closed mostly lower in Tuesday trading as The Stoxx Europe lost 0.50%, the FTSE in London dropped 0.86%, France's CAC fell 1.14%, the Swiss Market Index lost 1.01%, while Germany's DAX edged 0.02% higher.

The annual inflation rate in Germany increased for the third straight month, rising 2.2% in November compared with a year earlier, up from 2.0% in October and 1.6% in September.

And in corporate news, shares of Ashtead Group tumbled 14% on the FTSE after it said Tuesday that it would move its primary listing from the London Stock Exchange to the US, while retaining a UK listing in the International Companies segment. The British equipment rental company said the move "is in the best interests of the business and its stakeholders."

British Oil and gas giant Shell has reached an out-of-court settlement with Greenpeace over a lawsuit relating to climate activists occupying a Shell offshore vessel in the UK North Sea for nearly two weeks during a 2023 protest, Greenpeace said Tuesday. Shell did not immediately respond to MT Newswires' request for comment.

Finnish telecommunications company Nokia said Tuesday it signed a multi-year extension with Iliad Group to enhance 3G, 4G, and 5G networks in France and Italy. The contract extension will provide Iliad's customers with improved network performance and scalability, Nokia said.

Alphabet's Google and Meta are under growing scrutiny by the European Commission about an alleged secret advertising partnership that reportedly bypassed Google's policies on minors, The Financial Times reported Tuesday. European regulators asked Google for information related to advertising practices, which the company has compiled and officials are "currently assessing the replies and deciding on potential next steps," a spokesperson for the European Commission told MT Newswires. Meta did not immediately respond to requests for comment from MT Newswires.

European automaker Stellantis and Contemporary Amperex Technology agreed to invest up to 4.1 billion euros ($4.32 billion) to form a joint venture for the development of a large-scale lithium iron phosphate battery plant in Spain, the companies said Tuesday.