Europe midday: Stocks dip ahead of US tax vote

Stocks are trading slightly lower, giving back some of the prior day's gains and in anticipation of the first of two votes in the US Congress on Republicans' tax reform plans that was scheduled for later in the day.

As of 1455 GMT, the benchmark Stoxx 600 was off by 0.09% or 0.38 points at 392.28, alongside a dip of 0.19% or 25.60 points to 13,286.36 on the German Dax and a fall of 0.24% or 13.07 points to 5,407.53 for the French Cac-40.

In parallel, euro/dollar was up by 0.24% to 1.1812.

"The equity index compass remains pointed north on a combination of US tax reform optimism, traditional year-end Santa Rally and stable but limited macro data. That said, geopolitics still in very much play with ANC leadership change in South Africa, some welcome Brexit respite and Saudi Arabia intercepting a ballistic missile," commented Mike van Dulken at Accendo Markets.

The US House of Representatives was expected to vote on the tax cut proposals on Tuesday, followed by a Senate vote the following day.

Weighing slightly on sentiment, business confidence in Germany slipped slightly in December, according to the prestigious IFO institute.

The think-tank's sentiment gauge dipped from 117.6 for November to 117.2 as a subindex of expectations fell from a reading of 111.0 to 109.5 (consensus: 110.7).

Elsewhere, data from Eurostat revealed a slowdown in euro area labour costs from a 1.8% pace year-on-year in the second quarter to 1.6% for the three-month stretch to September.

In remarks made before the release of the labour cost figures, analysts at Rabobank told clients that a reading in-line with the 1.8% year-on-year clip observed in the second quarter should be consistent with core consumer prices running below the European Central Bank's target.

Later in the day, investors would be waiting on the release of US housing starts figures for November at 1330 GMT, alongside a reading on the country's current account deficit during the third quarter.

In corporate news, shares of Hugo Boss shot higher company chief Mark Langer told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung it was aiming to grow more quickly than the market in 2018.

Elsewhere, Old Mutual agreed to sell its single strategy business for $600m in a management buy-out backed by private equity outfit TA Associates.