Europe close: Stocks dip ahead of US-China trade deal signing
Stocks on the Continent traded slightly lower on Wednesday as investors sat on their hands ahead of the signing of the US-China trade deal scheduled for later in the day.
"While the deal will almost certainly help the US economy through increased Chinese demand, the decision the retain tariffs on Chinese imports does highlight a continued ‘America first’ deal which seeks to benefit US growth at the expense of global prosperity," said IG market analyst Josh Mahony.
By the end of trading, the benchmark Stoxx 600 had edged up 0.01% to 419.63, alongside a 0.18% dip for Germany's Dax to 13,432.30 while the FTSE Mibtel gave back 0.69% to 23,763.86.
Also weighing on sentiment was a weaker than expected print on UK consumer prices for December, which came in at up by 1.3% versus a year, which was less than November's pace of 1.5%, which economists had expected to remain unchanged.
On the heels of those numbers, Monetary Policy Committee member Michael Saunders warned that slow growth and a weaker jobs market could lead to a persistent output gap and sustained low prices.
Echoing the UK data, in Spain, the national statistics office revised its estimate for the year-on-year rate of increase in consumer prices in December from 0.9% to 0.8%.
In the wake of those numbers, the Stoxx 600's bank sector gauge fell 1.37% to 140.89.
Elsewhere on the economic side of things, Germany's Federal Office of Statistics reported that the country's economic growth slowed to just 0.6% in 2019 - the least in six years.
Danish food ingredients maker Chr Hansen was near the bottom of the pile on the Stoxx 600 after warning of a weaker outlook for various of its end markets, including dairy.
However, the weakest performance was that of Tullow Oil, following the latest trading update from the explorer.
Italy's Atlantia meanwhile fell after La Stampa reported that Rome was set to revoke the tollway operator's motorway concession, although lawmakers from the PD apparently harboured concerns about such a move.
Shares in various lenders, including Banco Sabadell, RBS and Commerzbank all declined as well.
CAC 40 - Risers
L'Oreal (OR) 269.40 +2.12%
Essilorluxottica (EL) 142.10 +1.61%
Danone (BN) 72.44 +1.46%
Veolia Environnement (VIE) 25.14 +1.45%
Dassault Systemes (DSY) 156.05 +1.33%
Hermes International (RMS) 708.60 +1.29%
Safran (SAF) 139.25 +1.20%
Pernod Ricard (RI) 167.25 +0.94%
ENGIE (ENGI) 14.90 +0.61%
Capgemini (CAP) 114.90 +0.57%
CAC 40 - Fallers
ArcelorMittal SA (MT) 14.68 -3.03%
Peugeot (UG) 19.96 -2.63%
Michelin (ML) 108.30 -2.34%
BNP Paribas (BNP) 50.96 -2.32%
AXA (CS) 24.18 -2.05%
ST Microelectronics (STM) 24.62 -1.79%
Societe Generale S.A. (GLE) 30.95 -1.54%
Saint Gobain (SGO) 35.42 -1.45%
Renault (RNO) 40.00 -1.23%
Sodexo (SW) 99.78 -1.21%