Fears of the central bank’s next move are dominating European stocks

European stocks and precious metals markets were weighed down by US Federal Reserve futures on Wednesday, and the European STOXX 600 index fell 0.3 percent to its all-time low after it announced plans to cut its annual dividend, in addition to a fall in the stock of sportswear company Adidas. Within a week, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said during a hearing before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday. “The central bank may need to raise interest rates more than expected, and it is prepared to act.” Measures to control inflation.

Meanwhile, Adidas shares fell 2 percent, the German sportswear maker plans to cut its annual dividend to 0.70 euros ($0.7374) per share, and Symrise shares fell 4 percent after the European chemicals sector was pushed. Margins for 2023 were marginally lower than market expectations due to higher costs of manufacturing flavors and fragrances.

Euro area reaches “zero growth”.

Meanwhile, the European Union’s statistical office (Eurostat) said the eurozone recorded no economic growth on a quarterly basis in the last three months of 2022, in a slight downward revision of GDP and employment data, but employment data remained strong.

Eurostat added in a statement, “Growth in the eurozone economy fell to zero in the third quarter in the fourth quarter and 1.8 percent year-on-year, compared with expectations for growth of 0.1 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively, released on February 14.” ) past tense.

While the economies of Germany, Estonia, Italy and Lithuania fell, Greece, Malta and Cyprus recorded quarterly growth of more than 1 percent.

“General expenditure contributed by around 0.2 percentage points, changes in inventories contributed by 0.1 percentage points, and net trade contributed by around 1.0 percentage points,” Eurostat said.

Eurostat cut employment growth data in Europe to 0.3 percent quarter-on-quarter from 0.4 percent in the previous forecast and 1.5 percent annual growth.

In addition, today’s data showed that German retail sales unexpectedly fell by 0.3 percent in January, as the Federal Statistics Office in Germany said “industrial production in the country grew by a better-than-expected 3.5 percent in January.” previous month.

In New York, US stock indexes opened slightly higher today after a wave of selling during the last session, and investors awaited more reports from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and jobs data.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 15.62 points, or 0.05 percent, to 32,872.08, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 22.75 points, or 0.20 percent, to 11,553.09.

The Japanese index reaches 28,444 points

In East Asia, Japan’s Nikkei index rose to its highest level in three-and-a-half months for the fourth consecutive session as expectations about export firms were supported by a weaker yen.

Retail stocks also rose on hopes of a return of high-spending Chinese tourists after Japan reopened its borders this month.

The Nikkei index closed up 0.48 percent at 28,444.19, after continuing its strong gains during afternoon trade, touching 28,469.41 moments before the close, a level not seen since Nov. 24.

The index has risen about 3.5 percent since last Thursday, and the broader TOPICS index rose 0.3 percent to 2051.21 points, after touching 2053.01 points for the first time since November 2021.

Gold continues to decline

In precious metals markets, gold prices fell 0.1 percent to $1,812.44 an ounce (ounce) in spot trading after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s statements hit their lowest level in a week. Gold futures were down 0.2 percent at $1,816.50.

In other precious metals, silver was at $20.03 an ounce in spot trading, platinum was up 0.8 percent at $936.72 and palladium was up 0.3 percent at $1391.40.