Live Markets: European futures steady; London awaits Spring budget
06/03/2024 07:43
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EUROPEAN FUTURES STEADY; LONDON AWAITS SPRING BUDGET
European shares were expected to edge higher at the open on Wednesday, with attention now
turning to Fed Chair Jerome Powell's testimony before Congress, while sterling traders in London
looked all set for UK finance minister Jeremy Hunt's Spring budget.
EuroSTOXX50 STXEc1 and FTSE FFIc1 futures both hovered around parity. Wall Street
contracts ESc1 pointed to a slightly higher started after losses of more than 1% on Tuesday as
megacap stocks were ditched in markets where bitcoin and gold returned in high demand.
A reshuffle of German equity indices resulted in no tweaks to the DAX .GDAXI , while there
were some surprises for mid-caps. Rational RAAG.DE and Vitesco VTSCn.DE will be replaced by
Zalando ZALG.DE and Novartis NOVN.S on the MDAX .MDAXI index.
The reporting season, meanwhile, continued in full swing, and there were also more signs of
the IPO market picking up after two quiet years for initial public offerings.
Skin care company Galderma said it intended to raise roughly $2.3 billion when it floats in
Zurich, in what is likely to be one of the biggest IPO in Europe this year.
In earnings, Irish bank AIB Group AIBG.I announced a more than four-fold increase in
returns to shareholders after higher rates helped it more than double its FY after-tax profit.
German logistics group DHL DHLn.DE forecast its 2024 operating profit to come in above
pre-pandemic figures, but the outlook fell short of market consensus amid weaker global trade.
Symrise SY1G.DE beat core profit estimates in 2023 as the German flavour and fragrance
maker implemented a disciplined cost management programme amid a tough economic environment.
In Spain, defence and tech company Indra IDR.MC said a rise in spending on defence in
Europe, mainly on high-tech, will boost its revenues and profitability over the next six years.
Carmakers were another focus. The European Commission will start customs registration of
Chinese EV imports, meaning they could be hit by tariffs if the EU's trade investigation later
concludes that they are receiving unfair subsidies.
Over in the UK, life insurer Legal & General LGEN.L reported an operating profit of 1.67
billion pounds ($2.12 billion) for 2023, below expectations and in a "challenging" economic
environment.
Eyes were also on the London Stock Exchange Group LSEG.L after a consortium of investors
sold about 1.4 billion pounds worth of shares in the London bourse owner.
Cardboard maker DS Smith SMDS.L said its like-for-like corrugated box volumes have
improved, but flagged that the market remains challenging.
(Danilo Masoni)
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