European shares rose on Wednesday, supported by banks and miners, ahead of a broadly priced-in pause in interest rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index closed 0.4% higher.
Banks, which tend to benefit from higher rates, rose 1.1%. Italy and Spain’s lender-heavy indexes rose 0.9% and 1.1%, respectively, to spearhead gains among major regional peers.
Traders all but fully baked in the Fed holding rates at the 5.00%-5.25% range later in the day, while giving it a 60% chance of a rate hike in July, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
A larger-than-expected drop in U.S. producer prices in May signalled that inflation was cooling and helped cement bets for a pause in tightening, further supported by data a day earlier that showed consumer prices moderated last month.
The U.S. central bank will release its policy statement at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT), followed by Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s press conference half an hour later.
“The widespread expectation is that they would take a breather and assess the data that they currently have,” said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.
“Core prices are staying sticky and that will be a concern, but I expect that there will be comments made by the Chair (Powell) about keeping the door open to further potential rate rises.”
The European Central Bank will hold its policy meeting on Thursday, where it is expected to hike rates by another 25 basis points to tame stubborn inflation.
Markets are looking for more economic data and updates from major central banks to drive a definitive move, as the STOXX 600 stays restricted to a 1% trading range for over a week.
Miners led sectoral gains, up 2.3%, as copper prices rose on a weaker dollar and expectations of further stimulus to boost economic growth in top consumer China boosted sentiment.
Data showed British economic output inched higher as expected in April, driven by the retail sector and the filming industry.
London’s FTSE 100 index closed 0.1% higher.
Logitech plunged 12.5% to the bottom of the STOXX 600 after the computer accessories maker said Chief Executive Officer and President Bracken Darrell is resigning from his role effective immediately.
The travel & leisure index fell 1.1% as Ladbrokes-owner Entain dropped 8.7%, after it said it would buy Poland-based sports betting operator STS Holdings for 750 million pounds ($946 million).
Shares of Spanish drugmaker Grifols jumped 6.8% to the top of the STOXX 600 after it disclosed a plan to reduce its stake in Shanghai RAAS in a deal that would bring it $1.5 billion.