By Ankika Biswas, Johann M Cherian and Ozan Ergenay
(Reuters) -Europe's benchmark stock index fell to a one-month low on Thursday, as banks took a hit after the European Central Bank held rates steady but signalled imminent cuts, while Deutsche Telekom (OTC:DTEGY) dropped to a five-month low on trading ex-dividend.
The ECB maintained interest rates at record high as expected, but signalled it may soon start to cut them, even as investors question whether stubborn U.S. inflation will stop the Federal Reserve from following close behind.
The pan-European STOXX 600 closed 0.4% lower in volatile trade, with the banking sector taking the biggest hit, falling 2.4% and notching its steepest one-day drop in over eight months.
The indexes of top economies in the currency union such as Germany, France, Italy and Spain were also down between 0.3% to 1.2%.
"The ECB's decision to update its guidance suggests that an interest rate cut at the next meeting in June is very likely," Jack Allen-Reynolds, deputy chief euro zone economist at Capital Economics wrote.
"We expect the Bank to reduce the deposit rate from 4% currently to 3% by the end of the year."
The telecoms sector also shed 2.1%, dragged down by a 6.2% drop in Deutsche Telekom as the company traded ex-dividend.
Also denting equities were higher euro zone bond yields as expectations for a higher-for-longer scenario for U.S. interest rates more than offset the ECB remarks.
Investors also parsed a cooler-than-expected March producer inflation data in the United States.
After a lacklustre week, the STOXX 600 had hit a one-month low on Wednesday after a hot U.S. inflation report sparked concerns on the timeline for the Federal Reserve's first rate cut, while raising expectations that the ECB could lower rates before its U.S. counterpart.
Among other sectors, utilities and healthcare were among the rare bright spots, up 0.5% each.
As for individual stocks, Ambu climbed 4.6% after the Danish maker of single-use endoscopy solutions hiked its full-year outlook and posted preliminary second-quarter financials.
Lufthansa dropped 2.7% after the German carrier extended a suspension of its flights to Tehran, with the Middle East on alert for Iranian retaliation for a suspected Israeli airstrike on the country's embassy in Syria.
Idorsia postponed its 2023 and first-quarter results publication, sending the Swiss biotech firm's shares down 26.4%.
AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) rose 2.1% after the drugmaker said it planned to increase its annual dividend by 7% for 2024.