European shares retreated for a third straight session on Wednesday as anxiety about elevated inflation and its potential impact on upcoming earnings season dampened risk appetite. The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.2%, with retail and technology stocks offsetting gains in miners.
European shares retreated for a third straight session on Wednesday as anxiety about elevated inflation and its potential impact on upcoming earnings season dampened risk appetite.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.2%, with retail and technology stocks offsetting gains in miners. Wall Street reversed early gains to end lower on Tuesday after data showed U.S. consumer prices rose to over four-decade highs in March. UK’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.1% as British inflation hit a 30-year high last month.
Britain’s biggest retailer Tesco dropped 4.7% after it warned profit was likely to fall in the current year. French luxury goods maker LVMH rose 1% as robust demand for Louis Vuitton and Dior products boosted first-quarter sales.
Telecom Italia’s (TIM) gained 2.9% after reports French telecoms group Iliad was interested in making an offer TIM’s domestic consumer service business.
(This story has not been edited by Teach Tactic staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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FTSE 100 slips as UK inflation hits 3-decade high, Tesco slides
UK shares fell on Wednesday after data showed inflation last month rose to its highest since March 1992, intensifying a cost-of-living squeeze faced by households, while Tesco slipped to the bottom of FTSE 100 after a profit warning.
UK shares fell on Wednesday after data showed inflation last month rose to its highest since March 1992, intensifying a cost-of-living squeeze faced by households, while Tesco slipped to the bottom of FTSE 100 after a profit warning. The blue-chip index edged 0.1% lower, while the domestically focused midcap FTSE 250 index declined 0.3%.
Tesco fell 4.8% after Britain’s biggest retailer warned its profit would fall in the current year due to the tough economic conditions and pressure on consumers. Consumer staple stocks Unilever and Diageo dragged the FTSE 100 lower, but a rise in AstraZeneca and miners limited losses.
Official figures showed British consumer price inflation (CPI) jumped to 7% in March, sharper than a forecast of 6.7% increase, and ramping up pressure on the Bank of England to accelerate its monetary policy tightening. Core CPI, which excludes food, energy, alcohol and tobacco prices, also rose to 5.7% last month from 5.2% in February. Hammerson slid 4.5% after JP Morgan downgraded the mall operator’s stock to “underweight” from “neutral” on risks from higher borrowing costs and a deteriorating consumer outlook.
