BERLIN, Jan 10 — European shares fell today as investors turned cautious ahead of a speech by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell after two US central bank policymakers struck hawkish tones overnight.
The pan-European STOXX 600 slid 0.7 per cent by 0811 GMT. The index had hit its highest level in eight months in the previous session.
Powell’s speech later in the day was on investors’ radar after Fed policymakers said they expected the Fed policy rate — now at 4.25 per cent to 4.5 per cent — to need to rise to a 5 per cent-5.25 per cent to rein in inflation.
Rate-sensitive technology stocks dropped 1.0 per cent, while pharmaceutical majors Novo Nordisk and Novartis AG dropped more than 1.5 per cent each, weighing on the STOXX 600.
Miners fell 1 per cent, tracking weak copper prices as investors gauged demand risks amid fears of further US rate hikes.
After a rough 2022, Europe’s STOXX 600 has risen 5.5 per cent since the start of this year on growing hopes that the euro zone will get a milder-than-expected recession and central banks will ease their aggressive monetary policy tightening.
UK’s export-heavy FTSE 100 slipped 0.4 per cent.
Britain announced plans yesterday to scale back energy subsidies for businesses for the next financial year by about 85 per cent, after the government described the current level of support as “unsustainably expensive”. — Reuters
