This is CNBC's live blog covering European financial markets.

• Novo Nordisk CEO to step down amid decline in share price
• ECB's Kazaks says interest rates are 'relatively close' to target level
• Renk stock soars after JPMorgan upgrade
• Richemont shares pop 7% on surging jewelry sales
• Germany's DAX edges toward record high

Novo Nordisk CEO to step down; Shares down by more than 3%

Weight-loss drug maker Novo Nordisk said its chief executive, Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen, will step down amid a steep decline in the pharmaceutical firm's stock price over the past 12 months.

The Danish company said Jorgensen will continue as CEO "for a period to support a smooth transition to new leadership."

Shares of the firm have fallen by more than 50% since the middle of 2024, which played a role in the CEO's exit.

"The changes are, however, made in light of the recent market challenges Novo Nordisk has been facing, and the development of the company's share price since mid-2024," the company said in a statement.

"In light of this, the Novo Nordisk Foundation Board initiated a dialogue with the Novo Nordisk Board on the merits of an accelerated CEO succession and expressed a wish to increase its representation on the Novo Nordisk Board," it added.

Read the story in full.

— Ganesh Rao

Renk stock soars after JPMorgan upgrade

Shares of battle tank parts maker Renk Group shot up by 8.5% after analysts at JPMorgan upgraded the stock to "overweight" — somewhat similar to a "buy" rating at other investment banks.

The upgrade from the Wall Street bank came after the company reported a 164% increase in its order book to 549 million euros ($615 million) in its first quarter.

The firm also said adjusted profits rose 38.1% to 38 million euros from the same quarter last year.

The stock has risen 227% so far this year, significantly surpassing most analysts' expectations.

Equity analysts have been hesitant to be overtly bullish on the company in light of an unexpected shake-up in Renk's management last year. In June 2024, the company's chief financial officer quit, and an exit by the then chief executive followed in November 2024.

JPMorgan's analyst David Perry and Lucy Fitzgerald, who doubled their price target to 70 euros per share, said they are now "more comfortable with the company's operational performance."

"Given the extremely strong outlook for European defence spending (especially in Germany) and very strong recent orders for armoured vehicles containing RENK's products, the future looks very bright for RENK, in our view," they added.

Renk's CEO also spoke to CNBC soon after announcing their first-quarter results.

— Ganesh Rao

Richemont shares pop 7% on surging jewelry sales

Shares of Cartier owner Richemont popped 7% on Friday after the luxury giant posted better-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter sales amid booming demand for its jewelry brands.

Revenues at the Swiss luxury group rose 7% year-on-year at constant exchange rates to 5.17 billion euros ($5.79 billion) in the three months to the end of March, above the 4.98 billion euros forecast by analysts in an LSEG poll.

Shares were up 7.2% by 9:48 a.m. London time.

The fourth-quarter sales bump was led by double-digit growth at the group's Jewellery Maisons division, which includes Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Buccellati.

Sales nevertheless declined within the company's specialist watchmakers segment, which features brands Piaget and Roger Dubuis, led by weakness in the Asia-Pacific region.

— Karen Gilchrist

Is the UK really the fastest-growing economy in the G7?

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Thursday that the U.K. has the fastest economic growth in the Group of Seven — the bloc made up of major economies Canada, the U.K., France, Germany, the U.S., Italy and Japan.

His comments came after data showed the U.K.'s economy grew by a better-than-expected 0.7% in the first quarter of the year.

A comparison of the seven countries' most recent quarterly gross domestic product releases shows that the U.K. is indeed experiencing the fastest pace of economic growth. Canada, which is set to publish its first quarter GDP figures at the end of this month, saw economic growth of 0.6% in the fourth quarter of 2024.

— Chloe Taylor

Germany’s DAX edges toward record high

The German DAX index was 0.8% higher at 8:57 a.m. in London, closing in on its previous all-time high.

The DAX has gained 19% since the beginning of the year.

— Chloe Taylor

Eutelsat shares drop 8% after quarterly earnings disappoint

Shares of French satellite operator Eutelsat were down 6.6% at 8:33 a.m. in London.  

The company's third-quarter earnings, published Thursday, had showed revenues dropped 1.9% year-on-year to 300.8 million euros ($337.3 million). Analysts had expected revenues of 304.2 million euros, according to FactSet data.

— Chloe Taylor

Swiss Re reports massive beat on first-quarter profits despite hit from Los Angeles wildfires

Reinsurance giant Swiss Re reported a blowout first-quarter profit of $1.3 billion, beating analyst expectations of $938 million, despite a major hit from its Los Angeles wildfire exposure.

The group said it took a charge of $570 million "mainly related to the Los Angeles wildfires" from earlier this year.

"The first quarter of 2025 was marked by significant large loss events in our property and casualty businesses," said Andreas Berger, chief executive of Swiss Re, in a statement to investors. "Despite this, all Business Units posted robust results, highlighting the resilience of the Group and underscoring our ability to support clients by acting as a shock absorber for peak risks."

A stock analyst said Swiss Re's performance for the first quarter was superior to that of its German peers Munich Re and Hannover Re, which reported their earnings earlier this week.

"One should not overemphasize the 36% consensus beat - but numbers are above the pro-rata full year target, which is clearly a positive," said Simon Foessmeier, equity analyst at Vontobel. "Numbers compare favorably versus the two German peers and the shares should react positively. We reiterate our Buy rating."

The stock is up 14% so far this year.

— Ganesh Rao

Watch: ECB's Kazaks says interest rates are 'relatively close' to target level

The European Central Bank's interest rates are "relatively close to the terminal rate" if inflation stays within range, Governing Council member Martins Kazaks told CNBC.

The view is similar to that expressed by fellow ECB board member Isabel Schnabel last week, who said: "The appropriate course of action is to keep rates close to where they are today – that is, firmly in neutral territory."

Goldman Sachs expects two rate cuts this year, while JPMorgan sees one.

— Ganesh Rao

ECB's Kazaks says interest rates are 'relatively close' to target level

The European Central Bank's interest rates are "relatively close to the terminal rate" if inflation stays within range, Governing Council member Martins Kazaks told CNBC's Silvia Amaro on Europe Early Edition.

"Currently, if one takes a look at the dynamics of inflation, we are by and large within the baseline scenario and if the baseline scenario holds, then I think we are relatively close to the terminal rate already," said Kazaks, who is also the Latvian central bank governor.

The terminal rate is the point at which interest rates do not act as headwinds for economic growth, and are consistent with allowing the central bank to achieve its inflation target.

The ECB's key interest rate (the deposit facility rate) currently stands at 2.25% after the central bank's governing council voted unanimously to reduce it by 25 basis points in April.

Kazaks also said that the market's expectation of a 25 basis point cut at the next ECB policy meeting on June 5 is "relatively appropriate, in my view."

— Ganesh Rao

Earnings due today

Friday will be a quieter day on the corporate earnings front, but investors can still expect a handful of reports out of European firms.

Richemont, Land Securities, Swiss Re and Thales are updating investors on their finances.

— Chloe Taylor

Opening calls

Good morning from London. It's 6:25 a.m. and futures are pointing toward a slight rally at the open.

FTSE 100 and CAC 40 futures are up by around 0.1%, while DAX futures are marginally higher.

European stocks ended Thursday's session in positive territory.

— Chloe Taylor