European Stocks Modestly Higher In Cautious Trade

(RTTNews) - European stocks are up in positive territory on Wednesday, recovering a bit after posting sharp losses in the previous session. Despite persisting concerns about Russia - Ukraine conflict, investors are picking up stocks, focusing on earnings and other corporate news, in addition to assessing the regional economic outlook.

The pan European Stoxx 600 is up 0.5%. Germany's DAX, France's CAC 40 and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 are higher by 0.43%, 0.35% and 0.21%, respectively. Switzerland's SMI is climbing up 0.6%.

On the geopolitical front, the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv said it would stay closed Wednesday after receiving a warning of a potentially significant Russian air attack on the Ukrainian capital.

The precautionary step came after Russian officials promised a response to President Joe Biden's decision to let Ukraine strike targets on Russian soil with U.S.-made missiles — a move that angered the Kremlin.

The Greek and Spanish embassies in Kyiv have closed to the public today, after air raid sirens were activated in the Ukrainian capital several times overnight.

In the UK market, Sage Group shares are up nearly 20% after the company reported strong annual results and announced a new share buyback program.

Severn Trent is rising 3.5% thanks to a significant turnaround in interim profits. United Utilities, Anglo American Plc, Beazley, IAG, Prudential, Mondi, Imperial Brands, Barclays Group and Standard Chartered are up 1 to 2.5%.

Convatec Group is down nearly 3%. Persimmon, British Land Company, Admiral Group, Entain, Taylor Wimpey, Segro, Marks & Spencer, Vistry Group, EasyJet and Howden Joinery are down 1 to 2.3%.

In the German market, Rheinmetall is up 2.7%, extending gains from the previous session. Brenntag is up nearly 2%, while HeidelbergCement, Zalando, SAP, Deutsche Bank, Deutsche Telekom and Adidas are gaining 1 to 1.3%.

Porsche is down more than 3%. Symrise, Sartorius, Fresenius, Merck and Mercedes-Benz are moderately lower.

In Paris, Edenred is climbing nearly 4% following a rating upgrade. Kering is up 2.3% and Teleperformance is advancing 1.8%. Dassault Systemes, Airbus, LVMH and Societe Generale are up 1 to 1.2%.

STMicroElectronics, Thales, Capgemini, Renault and Stellantis are down with sharp to moderate losses.

In the Swiss market, shares of private equity firm Partners Group are up 1.5% after the group purchased a majority stake in Spain-based hospitality platform Bluesea Hotels. As part of the deal, Partners Group will join Bluesea's board and manage the latter's renovations, expansion, and hotel acquisitions in partnership with Portobello Capital.

On the economic front, UK consumer price inflation accelerated more than expected in October, lowering the chances of a rate cut at the upcoming monetary policy meeting in December.

The consumer price index rose 2.3% on a yearly basis, following September's 1.7% increase, which was the lowest since April 2021, the Office for National Statistics reported today.

The rate again exceeded the Bank of England's 2% target and also remained above economists' forecast of 2.2%.

Core inflation edged up unexpectedly to 3.3% from 3.2% in September. The core rate was seen at 3.1%.

Germany's producer prices dropped 1.1% in October on a yearly basis, following a 1.4% fall in the prior month, data from Destatis showed. Month-on-month, producer prices rebounded 0.2% in October after falling 0.5% in September.

Eurozone construction output dropped 0.1% monthly after remaining flat in in August, data from Eurostat showed. The yearly decline in construction output eased to 1.6% from 2.5%.