European shares had edged a little higher by midday on Tuesday in cautious trade as investors eyed a key US inflation report the next day.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index and France’s CAC 40 were both up 0.3%, while Germany’s Dax was 0.2% firmer.
Investors were looking ahead to fresh US inflation readings, with the latest producer price index due Tuesday and the consumer price index slated expected on Wednesday.
Economists are expecting producer prices to have risen 0.6% in October from September. The consumer price index is also expected to show a 0.6% jump compared to the prior month.
IG market analyst Chris Beauchamp said: “European markets have shrugged off the weakness seen in Japanese stocks overnight and instead have focussed on the continued positive theme of earnings season on both sides of the Atlantic, while in New York US futures are quiet after yet another day of gains for Wall Street. Earnings growth and GDP expansion are both expected to slow next year, which helps to explain the cautious tone of many strategists after a year of incredible performance for some equity indices.
“With little in the way of news to drive indices this morning we have seen little movement overall, and with strong gains having been registered in the past six weeks there is a growing possibility that some kind of mid-month weakness will appear to spook investors. Historically however late November and then December are positive periods for stock markets, keeping the hope of a last push higher into year-end firmly alive.”
In equity news, shares in Britain’s Associated British Foods surged as it announced a special dividend after the company’s balance sheet recovered from impact of the Covid pandemic.
Salmon farmer Bakkafrost tumbled as the company reported lower third-quarter earnings and cut harvest targets.
Munich Re shares fell as the insurer forecast more Covid-19-related losses.
German agriculture and pharmaceutical firm Bayer rose after reporting a better-than-expected rise in quarterly adjusted earnings.
