12:22 PM EDT, 09/25/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The European stock markets closed mostly lower in Wednesday trading as The Stoxx Europe 600 was off 0.12%, France's CAC fell 0.5%, the FTSE in London declined 0.17%, Germany's DAX dropped 0.39%, while the Swiss Market Index gained 0.83%.

Spain's GDP growth rate for 2024 and 2025 is expected to be 2.8% and 2.2% respectively, the highest among Euro area countries, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development's interim 2024 economic outlook. France and the UK followed Spain, each projected to report GDP growth in 2024 and 2025 of 1.1% and 1.2% respectively. By comparison, the OECD expects Euro Area GDP growth of 0.7% in 2024 and 1.3% in 2025.

French households' opinion on their past and future financial situation improved in September, according to the Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies' synthetic index gauging the sentiment, which rose to 95 in September from 93 in August. INSEE said the proportion of households believing it is a good time to make major purchases has kept growing slightly.

In Germany, price-adjusted incoming orders in the construction industry declined 5.9% in July from June, according to the Federal Statistical Office. Incoming orders for building construction fell 12.2%.

And in corporate news, Meta Platforms will not immediately join a European Union pact governing the development and implementation of AI but could do so at a later stage, multiple media outlets reported Tuesday, citing a company spokesperson. The pact is a measure to get tech companies to abide by AI restrictions before an EU law governing AI fully comes into effect, Reuters reported.

German software firm SAP and software reseller Carahsoft Technology are being probed by the US Department of Justice for potentially conspiring to inflate prices on government contracts, particularly with the US military, over the past decade, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing federal court records filed in Baltimore.

European automaker Stellantis is recalling 15,835 Fiat 124 Spider vehicles due to a software issue that could cause the front airbags to deploy with too much force during a crash, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on Wednesday. The recall affects certain Fiat 124 Spider models from 2017 to 2020. Stellantis shares dropped 1.6% in Paris.

Shares of online sports betting operator Flutter Entertainment closed 6.9% higher in London after it announced plans for a $5 billion share buyback program.