Europe open: Stocks track Wall Street lower, euro gains altitude
European stocks have begun the day moving lower with further gains for the single currency weighing on equities amid a fresh setback for the US administration's plans to push through healthcare reform.
That, some observers worried, might delay a long-awaited fiscal stimulus plan from the White House.
As of 0831 BST, the benchmark Stoxx 600 was down by 0.61% or 2.34 points to 383.57, alongside a fall of 0.70% or 89.13 points to 12,581.12 for the German Dax and a dip of 0.65% or 2.44 points to 5,223.91 in the Cac-40.
Overnight, US Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell reportedly told colleagues a vote on the health care bill being pushed by Republicans in the upper chamber of Congress would be postponed until after the 4 July recess.
Acting as a backdrop, Europe's single currency continued to climb higher, gaining 0.19% to 1.1359.
Weakness in the euro was "driven by a combination of ECB President Draghi driving the EUR higher with surprisingly hawkish rhetoric yesterday, more disappointing US data yesterday and yet another vote delay for Trump’s US healthcare bill sapping yet more confidence in his grand policy and stimulus plans," said Mike van Dulken and Henry Croft at Accendo Markets.
The day before, European Central Bank president Mario Draghi appeared to sound a more confident on the outlook for inflation.
Commenting on his remarks, analysts at Barclays Research said: "We consider this to be a major milestone in ECB communication, and that it could open the door to a revision of the forward guidance after the summer, to allow the ECB to proceed with some 'technical adjustments' as the recovery continues to strengthen."
Barclay forecast the ECB would hike its deposit rate, then in negative territory, in two 10 basis points increments in 2018, first in the second quarter of next year and again in the last three months.
Front month Brent crude futures were 0.61% lower to $43.97 a barrel on the ICE. That followed a surprise 851,000 build in weekly US oil inventories last week, according to data released overnight by the American Petroleum Institute.
French consumer confidence shot ahead in June, with INSEE's monthly gauge jumping from an upwardly revised reading of 103 for May to 108 in June.
Spanish retail sales grew at a 2.4% year-on-year clip in May, ahead of analysts forecasts for a rise of 2.2%.
Euro area money supply data was set for release at 0900 BST, followed by Italian consumer price data for June one hour later at 1000 BST.
Later in the day, the US Commerce Department was set to publish its first estimate for the international trade balance for May at 1330 BST, followed by figures on wholesale inventories at 1330 BST and pending home sales at 1500 BST.
America's central bank was also scheduled to publish the definitive stress test results for the nation's lenders, at 2130 BST.
The Dutch government cashed in a 7% stake in ABN Amro for €1.48bn, selling 65.0m shares via an accelerated bookbuilding process. It was left holding 63% of the lender's share capital.
Royal Philips inked a deal to takeover America's Spectranetics for $1.7bn.
Nestle unveiled a 20.0bn Swiss franc share buyback programme just days after US activist investor Third Point prodded management to make such a move.
S&P reaffirmed its short and long-term ratings on Intesa Sanpaolo's.
France's Legrand agreed to buy US infrastructure outfit Milestone AV Technologies for $950m.