European Shares Gain As Investors Ponder US Rate Cut Prospects

European stocks edged higher on Wednesday as investors continued to assess the prospects for interest- rate cuts following last week's weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs report.

It seems that markets have shrugged off comments from Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari, who said Tuesday that rates will likely stay high for an "extending period" and that he will support a hike if inflation stalls near 3 percent.

In economic releases, Destatis reported earlier today that Germany's industrial production dropped in March on weak consumer and intermediate goods output.

German industrial production declined 0.4 percent on a monthly basis, in contrast to the 1.7 percent increase in February.

This was the first drop so far this year and the pace of decline was less severe than the expected 0.6 percent fall.

The pan European STOXX 600 was up 0.4 percent at 515.92 after rallying 1.1 percent on Tuesday.

The German DAX climbed 0.6 percent, France's CAC 40 rallied 0.9 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was up 0.4 percent.

The British pound slipped before the Bank of England's policy announcement on Thursday.

There's little expectation of an immediate cut, but investors are looking for a clearer signal on whether the central bank plans to start cutting interest in the summer.

In corporate news, Netherlands-headquartered Supermarket group Ahold Delhaize rallied 3.3 percent after beating Q1 core profit margin expectations.

Swedish builder Skanska slumped 5.5 percent after first-quarter operating earnings came in below estimates.

AstraZeneca rallied 1.6 percent. The drug maker said it has initiated a process to withdraw its Vaxzevria COVID-19 vaccine worldwide, citing weak demand and the surplus availability of new vaccines.

Oil & gas giant BP Plc fell over 2 percent, a day after reporting a 45 percent drop in Q1 earnings.

Real estate investment trust Workspace Group declined 1.7 percent after appointing Lawrence Hutchings as its CEO designate.

Informa jumped 2.3 percent. The publishing and exhibitions company has lifted its share buyback program by 50 percent after a strong start to 2024.

Lender HSBC Holdings gained more than 1 percent as it announced the anticipated launch of four separate offers to purchase for cash any and all of the four series of notes.

Alstom SA shares surged 3.4 percent in Paris. The French manufacturer of infrastructures for rail transport sector said it is planning a capital increase of about €1 billion ($1.1 billion) to shore up its finances.

Siemens Energy soared nearly 13 percent. The German power equipment maker raised its 2024 guidance after posting strong quarterly results.

Sportswear maker Puma rallied 3.4 percent after Q1 sales met expectations.

Consumer goods giant Henkel jumped 2.1 percent after raising its sales and earnings outlook for 2024.

Automaker BMW fell more than 3 percent after it forecast a slight drop in pre-tax profit this year.

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