The major European markets concluded Wednesday on a positive note as investors welcomed the U.S. consumer price inflation data, which aligned with expectations, while anticipating the European Central Bank’s policy announcement on Thursday.
According to the U.S. Labor Department, the consumer price index increased by 0.3% in November, following four consecutive months of a 0.2% rise. This increment matched market predictions. The annual growth rate of consumer prices edged up to 2.7% in November from 2.6% in October, staying consistent with forecasts.
Additionally, core consumer prices in November were up by 3.3% year-over-year, unchanged from October and aligning with expectations. The data reinforcing market confidence points to a likely Federal Reserve interest rate cut of another quarter point next week.
Attention also turned to the outcome of China's two-day Central Economic Work Conference, anticipated to outline policies for the coming year.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 rose by 0.28%, with the U.K.'s FTSE 100 up by 0.26%, Germany's DAX advancing 0.34%, and France's CAC 40 closing higher by 0.39%. Switzerland's SMI also rose 0.34%.
In other European markets, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, and Portugal ended the day higher, while Belgium, Poland, Russia, Spain, Sweden, and Turkiye closed weaker. Meanwhile, Austria, Greece, and Norway finished flat.
In the UK market, Endeavour Mining surged nearly 6%, Pearson rallied 3.35%, and other notable gainers included Reckitt Benckiser, Fresnillo, Lloyds Banking Group, and others, with gains ranging between 1% and 3%.
RM Plc shares jumped over 8% after indicating that its anticipated fiscal year results would surpass market expectations.
Conversely, shares in GSK, British Land, Segro, and other companies fell between 1% and 2.5%.
Siemens Energy in Germany rebounded over 3% after recovering from earlier losses, while Zalando, originally dropping over 6% intraday due to its acquisition announcement of About You Holding for 1.1 billion euros, rebounded to close nearly 2% higher.
Vonovia, HeidelbergCement, Fresenius, and Rheinmetall also recorded strong gains, while Siemens, Beiersdorf, and others closed significantly higher.
RWE declined nearly 2%, with BMW and Bayer closing down roughly 1.5% and 1.4%, respectively.
In the French market, Publicis Groupe advanced 3.5% following a JP Morgan rating upgrade, and companies like Safran and Schneider Electric recorded gains between 1% and 2.3%.
Conversely, Teleperformance ended nearly 3% lower, with Orange, TotalEnergies, and others also notably down.
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