European markets cautiously higher ahead of Fed meeting

KEY POINTS
  • Investors await the Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting which starts on Tuesday — a focal point for the markets this week.
  • The Producer Price Index — which measures the prices paid to producers as opposed to prices on the consumer level — rose 0.8% month-on-month in May, outstripping a Dow Jones estimate of 0.5%.

(CNBC)/LONDON — European stocks traded in positive territory on Tuesday as investors await the start of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy meeting.

TICKER COMPANY NAME PRICE CHANGE %CHANGE VOLUME
.FTSE FTSE 100 FTSE 7174.38 27.70 0.39 445226808
.GDAXI DAX DAX 15729.16 55.52 0.35 23091593
.FCHI CAC 40 Index CAC 6643.45 27.10 0.41 35429137

The pan-European Stoxx 600 added 0.3% by early afternoon trade, with chemicals and insurance stocks climbing 1% while basic resources dropped 1.7%.

Shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Tuesday, with Japanese and Australian stocks leading gains regionally, while U.S. stock index futures were flat in premarket trade as investors await the Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting which starts on Tuesday — a focal point for the markets this week.

The central bank is not expected to take any action however, commentary on interest rates, inflation and the economy could drive market moves and there will be close attention to comments on the Fed’s eventual tapering plans.

Billionaire hedge fund manager Paul Tudor Jones told CNBC on Monday that this Fed meeting could be the most important in Chairman Jerome Powell’s career. Jones also warned that Powell could spark a big sell-off in risk assets if he doesn’t do a good job of signaling a taper.

Investors were also digesting another inflation gauge released on Tuesday. The Producer Price Index — which measures the prices paid to producers as opposed to prices on the consumer level — rose 0.8% month-on-month in May, outstripping a Dow Jones estimate of 0.5%. On an annual basis, this represented a 6.6% increase from the same time last year, an all-time record 12-month rise.

German final harmonized inflation was 2.4% annually in May, official figures confirmed Tuesday, while French final inflation came in at 1.8%.

In terms of individual share price movement, Italian infrastructure group Atlantia jumped 4.7% on reports that it is considering a 2 billion euro ($2.4 billion) share buyback and 600 million euro dividend payout next year, following the agreed sale of motorway unit Autostrade.

At the bottom of the European blue chip index, German steel conglomerate Thyssenkrupp dropped 7%.

 

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