11:54 AM EDT, 08/13/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The European stock markets closed mixed in Thursday trading as The Stoxx Europe edged 0.1% lower, Germany's DAX was off 0.1%, the FTSE 100 fell 0.8%, France's CAC declined 0.3%, and the Swiss Market Index gained 0.2%.

In the UK, real gross domestic product expanded 0.4% in Q2, slowing from growth of 0.6% the previous quarter, according to the Office for National Statistics. Monthly GDP, however, expanded 0.3% in June after remaining stagnant in May.

Services were the main driver of Q2 growth, rising 0.5%, while production was flat, and construction rose 0.3%.

In corporate news, Novo Nordisk CEO Mike Doustdar defended the drugmaker's lawsuit against Eli Lilly over advertising for its weight-loss drugs, saying competition should be fierce but fair, CNBC reported Wednesday.

Novo sued Lilly last month, alleging its advertising misleads consumers about the efficacy of Lilly's Zepbound compared with Novo's Wegovy. Lilly has said it stands firmly behind its advertising, CNBC reported.

Doustdar said Lilly's comparisons rely on an older, lower-dose version of Wegovy and do not reflect Novo's newer 7.2-milligram dose, which was approved by the FDA in March.

Shares of the Danish pharmaceutical company fell 0.4% in Copenhagen.

Novartis defeated a bid by Accord Healthcare to invalidate its Entresto patent, with a UK court ruling that the patent and a related protection certificate remain valid, Reuters reported on Thursday.

The court also ruled that Accord's planned generic version of Entresto would infringe Novartis' patent, according to the report.

Novartis did not immediately respond to MT Newswires' request for comment.

Shares of the Swiss pharmaceutical company declined 0.3% in Zurich.

Deutsche Bank's DWS is partnering with life insurance consolidator Frankfurter Leben to acquire Athora Deutschland.

The partnership enables DWS, a provider of retirement services, to target growth in institutional insurance clients and alternative investments while helping Frankfurter Leben with consolidation in Germany's life insurance industry, according to a statement Wednesday.

Shares of Deutsche Bank dropped 0.7% in Frankfurt.

British oil and gas major BP has awarded Emerson Electric a multimillion-dollar contract to provide automation technologies for the Shah Deniz Compression project off the coast of Azerbaijan, Emerson Electric said Thursday.

The contract covers integrated control and safety systems for the offshore compression platform, including process control, safety shutdown, fire and gas detection and power management, to support remote operations and improve production, safety and reliability, Emerson said.

Shares of BP lost 1.7% in London.

Rio Tinto secured A$2.5 billion ($1.8 billion) in government financial support to keep the Tomago facility operating amid high energy costs, Bloomberg reported late Wednesday.

The federal and New South Wales governments will provide support that will allow the venture to invest A$1.1 billion in the smelter and make it more flexible in reducing power consumption during periods of high grid demand, Bloomberg reported.

Shares of the mining company shed 4.7% in London.