Investing.com – European stock markets fell on Thursday despite a global rally driven by U.S. inflation as investors digested some negative earnings.
At 03:25 ET (0725 GMT), Germany was trading 0.1% lower, France was down 0.2% and the UK was down 0.4%.
Profits weigh on sentiment in Europe
European markets broke the overall positive mood on Thursday, marred by some disappointing corporate news.
Siemens shares fell nearly 2% after the German engineering group reported second-quarter profit at its industrial business fell 2% following a decline in its flagship factory automation unit.
Deutsche Telekom (OTC:) shares fell 0.6%, even though the German telecom giant maintained its full-year guidance after rising first-quarter revenue.
EasyJet (LON:) shares fell 6% after the budget airline reported a larger-than-expected pre-tax loss for the first half of the year, even as inflationary pressures on the sector began to ease.
It was good news as BT Group (LON:) shares rose 9% after the telecoms group increased its dividend, completing a £3bn cost-cutting program a year ahead of schedule.
Europe resists global rally
The losses in Europe, while admittedly small, bucked the global trend following Wall Street’s rapid rally to new record levels and then a related rally in Asia.
The main catalyst was the US economy’s below-expected growth in April, raising hopes of interest rate cuts this year, likely to begin in September.
Higher-than-expected U.S. consumer prices in the first quarter led to sharp cuts in rate cuts and even raised some concerns about additional hikes that could hit growth in the world’s largest economy.
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The Fed is expected to cut rates before the Fed, most likely in June, and there will be plenty of central bank speakers throughout the day, both in Europe and the US, who will provide further clues as to their thoughts on future monetary policy. politicians.
Oil rose after US CPI and inventories
Crude oil prices rose on Thursday, extending gains from the previous session following the release of US consumer inflation data and a larger-than-expected decline in US inventories.
By 3:25 a.m. ET, futures were trading 0.4% higher at $78.91 a barrel, while the contract was up 0.3% at $83.03 a barrel.
Oil markets were supported by a softer-than-expected release of the US Consumer Price Index, raising the prospect of a rate cut, potentially boosting future global economic activity and therefore oil demand.
Official data on Wednesday showed U.S. output fell by 2.5 million barrels more than expected in the week to May 10, raising hopes for improved demand in the world’s biggest fuel consumer, especially as the travel-heavy summer season approaches. .
It also fell 0.1% to $2,393.60 an ounce and traded 0.1% lower at 1.0880.