Please try another search
© Reuters. The German share price index DAX graph is pictured at the stock exchange in Frankfurt
By Sruthi Shankar
(Reuters) - A cautious mood prevailed in European equity markets on Thursday as investors looked ahead to the U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's outlook on monetary policy.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index (STOXX) slipped 0.3%, with banks (SX7P) being the biggest drags after HSBC (L:HSBA) fell 2.2%. The British bank came under fresh U.S. criticism on Wednesday for its reported treatment of customers linked with the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.
Tech stocks (SX8P) extended gains after another record-setting session on Wall Street. (N)
Investors will be looking for clues on the U.S. central bank's new strategy for meeting its price stability and maximum employment goals amid a deep economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Powell is set to speak at 1310 GMT.
"It's hard to imagine Powell's going to say much more that is particularly supportive," said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG. "It's going to be a speech that perhaps marks a high-water mark for risk in the short term."
European Central Bank chief economist Philip Lane is also scheduled to speak at the virtual Jackson Hole meeting.
Germany's exporter-heavy DAX (GDAXI) posted minimal losses as data showed profit at China's industrial firms grew for a third straight month in July and at the fastest pace since June 2018.
The auto sector (SXAP), up 0.7%, was among the few gainers.
Barring the German manufacturing sector, recent data has pointed to the plateauing of an economic recovery in the euro zone as several countries see a resurgence in coronavirus cases.
A Reuters poll of fund managers showed European stocks are expected to stall for the rest of 2020 and miss out on the bull market, which has propelled Wall Street to record highs.
WPP (L:WPP), the world's biggest advertising company, jumped 4.7% as it resumed its dividend after cost cuts and a switch to faster ad production helped it to beat dire forecasts for second-quarter trading.
Smaller rival Publicis (PA:PUBP) rose 1.2%.
German online takeaway food group Delivery Hero (DE:DHER) slipped 1.4% after announcing the acquisition of online grocery service InstaShop.
French conglomerate Bouygues (PA:BOUY) rose 3.2% after reporting a lower-than-expected core operating loss in the first half of the year.
Clinical diagnostics company Novacyt (PA:ALNOV) (L:NCYT) jumped 6.1% after it launched a test to differentiate between COVID-19 and common winter diseases.
Are you sure you want to block %USER_NAME%?
By doing so, you and %USER_NAME% will not be able to see any of each other's Investing.com's posts.
%USER_NAME% was successfully added to your Block List
Since you’ve just unblocked this person, you must wait 48 hours before renewing the block.
I feel that this comment is:
Thank You!
Your report has been sent to our moderators for review
Add a Comment
We encourage you to use comments to engage with other users, share your perspective and ask questions of authors and each other. However, in order to maintain the high level of discourse we’ve all come to value and expect, please keep the following criteria in mind:
Enrich the conversation, don’t trash it.
Stay focused and on track. Only post material that’s relevant to the topic being discussed.
Be respectful. Even negative opinions can be framed positively and diplomatically. Avoid profanity, slander or personal attacks directed at an author or another user. Racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination will not be tolerated.
Perpetrators of spam or abuse will be deleted from the site and prohibited from future registration at Investing.com’s discretion.