European Stocks Close Higher

(RTTNews) - European stocks closed on a firm note on Wednesday with investors shifting their focus away from the political scene, indulging in some buying ahead of a slew of key economic data, including a report on U.S. consumer price inflation.

The pan European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.91%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 gained 0.66%, Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 ended higher by 0.94% and 0.86%, respectively. Switzerland's SMI jumped 0.95%.

Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden closed higher.

Greece, Iceland, Poland, Russia and Turkiye ended weak.

In the UK market, Endeavour Mining Plc and Fresnillo both gained nearly 4%. Entain, Prudential, EasyJet, Centrica, London Metric Property, Schrodders, Sainsbury (J), Next, United Utilities, Marks & Spencer, Land Securities, Melrose Industries, Segro, Severn Trent, Kingfisher and Vodafone Group climbed 2 to 3.3%.

Sage Group, WPP and Smith (DS) lost 1 to 2%. Barratt Developments declined sharply. Citing high mortgage rates and broader economic concerns, the housebuilder said it is targeting to deliver fewer homes in the year ahead.

In the German market, Vonovia rallied more than 4%. Porsche gained about 3.7%, and Bayer advanced 3%.

Adidas, Qiagen, Siemens Energy, BMW, Zalando, Siemens, Daimler Truck Holding, E.ON, Fresenius Medical Care, Mercedes-Benz, RWE and Infineon also ended with strong gains.

Covestro, BASF and MTU Aero Engines ended notably lower. Volkswagen ended modestly lower after a warning that it may close the Brussels site of its luxury brand Audi due to a sharp drop in demand for high-end electric cars.

In the French market, Vivendi, Eurofins Scientific, Teleperformance, STMicroElectronics, Stellantis and Bouygues gained 2 to 2.6%.

Orange, Sanofi, LVMH, Unibail Rodamco, Safran, Hermes International, Schneider Electric, AXA, Airbus and Societe Generale ended higher by 1 to 1.7%.

Publicis Groupe, Michelin, Veolia, Essilor and TotalEnergies closed weak.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said in his congressional testimony that more "good data" would strengthen the central bank's confidence inflation is moving sustainably toward its 2 percent target and lead to a potential interest rate cut.

Powell also warned of the risk that leaving interest rates at an elevated level for too long could jeopardize economic growth.

"In light of the progress made both in lowering inflation and in cooling the labor market over the past two years, elevated inflation is not the only risk we face," he said. "Reducing policy restraint too late or too little could unduly weaken economic activity and employment."