Bourses flat as holiday torpor sets in
European equities were flat on Wednesday as hints from the US Federal Reserve that its rate-tightening cycle may be approaching an end were not enough to shake the market out of its recent torpor.
In early trade, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down 0.1 per cent to 1,265.08, while Frankfurt’s Xetra Dax shed 0.3 per cent to 5,295.31.
In Paris, the CAC 40 (Paris: news) was down 0.2 per cent to 4,684.56, but London’s FTSE 100 (news) was up 0.2 per cent to 5,516.2.
In the US on Tuesday, the main stock indicators finished the session higher as Wall Street interpreted the statement that accompanied the Fed’s quarter-point rate increase as signalling its 1.5-year campaign was nearing an end.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.5 per cent higher at 10,823.72, while the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQ: news) added 0.2 per cent to 2,265.