European stocks were little changed on Friday as market players awaited news on whether the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut interest rates this month.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 hovered around the flatline during afternoon trade and ended the session 0.12% higher to 387.25 with sectors and major bourses pointing in opposite directions. Basic Resources were the strongest performers with a 1.1% climb, while bank stocks were 0.9% lower as Italian banks declined amid tension between the two parties of the nation’s coalition government.
Markets were initially buoyed by comments from a top Fed official on Thursday that suggested the central bank would implement a pre-emptive “insurance” rate cut aimed at averting a major slump in economic growth.
Source: CNBC