Investing.com - European stocks turned mixed to higher on Thursday, despite the release of disappointing economic reports out of the euro zone and as the Federal Reserve gave no clear indication on when it plans to scale back its stimulus program.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.54%, France’s CAC 40 gained 0.46%, while Germany’s DAX 30 added 0.16%.
Official data showed that consumer price inflation in the euro zone rose 0.7% in October, the slowest pace since November 2009, after rising 1.1% in September. Economists had expected the rate of inflation to remain unchanged.
The rate is further below the European Central Bank's target of near but just below 2%.
A separate report showed that the euro zone unemployment rate remained unchanged at a record high 12.2% in September, compared to expectations for a decline to 12%.
Earlier Thursday data showed that German retail sales fell unexpectedly for a second month in September, down 0.4% on a monthly basis. Economists had expected a 0.4% rise.
In the U.S., the Fed left its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program in place and gave no clear indication whether it would start scaling back stimulus at the December meeting or continue it into the start of 2014.
"The housing sector has slowed somewhat in recent months," the Fed statement said. However, Fed officials stuck to the view that the economy is expanding "at a moderate pace" and said downside risks were diminishing.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale surged 2.82% and 2.23%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank rallied 1.59%. Earlier in the day, BNP Paribas reported an unexpected increase in third-quarter net income.
Among peripheral lenders, Spanish banks BBVA and Banco Santander rose 0.44% and 0.89% respectively, while Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit gained 1.24% and 1.41%.
Elsewhere, Air France-KLM tumbled 1.35% after saying earnings will be at the bottom of its 2014 projected range.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 retreated 0.32%, stillweighed by sharp losses in Shell, down 4.42%, after the oil company said third-quarter earnings dropped due to lower refining gains and disruptions in Nigerian output.
Meanwhile, mining stocks turned broadly lower. Rio Tinto eased 0.03% and BHP Billiton slipped 0.13%, while Glencore Xstrata plummeted 1.20% and Fresnillo plunged 2.50%.
In the financial sector, stocks remained broadly higher as HSBC Holdings added 0.15% and the Royal Bank of Scotland rose 0.33%, while Lloyds Banking advanced 0.50%. Barclays erased earlier gains however, sliding 0.52%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.14% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.22% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.43% drop.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release data on initial jobless claims and a report on manufacturing activity in the Chicago region.
During European afternoon trade, the EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.54%, France’s CAC 40 gained 0.46%, while Germany’s DAX 30 added 0.16%.
Official data showed that consumer price inflation in the euro zone rose 0.7% in October, the slowest pace since November 2009, after rising 1.1% in September. Economists had expected the rate of inflation to remain unchanged.
The rate is further below the European Central Bank's target of near but just below 2%.
A separate report showed that the euro zone unemployment rate remained unchanged at a record high 12.2% in September, compared to expectations for a decline to 12%.
Earlier Thursday data showed that German retail sales fell unexpectedly for a second month in September, down 0.4% on a monthly basis. Economists had expected a 0.4% rise.
In the U.S., the Fed left its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program in place and gave no clear indication whether it would start scaling back stimulus at the December meeting or continue it into the start of 2014.
"The housing sector has slowed somewhat in recent months," the Fed statement said. However, Fed officials stuck to the view that the economy is expanding "at a moderate pace" and said downside risks were diminishing.
Financial stocks were broadly higher, as French lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale surged 2.82% and 2.23%, while Germany's Deutsche Bank rallied 1.59%. Earlier in the day, BNP Paribas reported an unexpected increase in third-quarter net income.
Among peripheral lenders, Spanish banks BBVA and Banco Santander rose 0.44% and 0.89% respectively, while Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit gained 1.24% and 1.41%.
Elsewhere, Air France-KLM tumbled 1.35% after saying earnings will be at the bottom of its 2014 projected range.
In London, commodity-heavy FTSE 100 retreated 0.32%, stillweighed by sharp losses in Shell, down 4.42%, after the oil company said third-quarter earnings dropped due to lower refining gains and disruptions in Nigerian output.
Meanwhile, mining stocks turned broadly lower. Rio Tinto eased 0.03% and BHP Billiton slipped 0.13%, while Glencore Xstrata plummeted 1.20% and Fresnillo plunged 2.50%.
In the financial sector, stocks remained broadly higher as HSBC Holdings added 0.15% and the Royal Bank of Scotland rose 0.33%, while Lloyds Banking advanced 0.50%. Barclays erased earlier gains however, sliding 0.52%.
In the U.S., equity markets pointed to a lower open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.14% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.22% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.43% drop.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release data on initial jobless claims and a report on manufacturing activity in the Chicago region.