20.08.202516:09:38UTC+00European Stocks Close Mixed

European stock markets exhibited a mixed performance on Wednesday, influenced by a downturn in U.S. markets the previous night as investors continued to weigh the prospects for global interest rates and a potential resolution to the conflict in Ukraine. The Eurozone's STOXX 50 index decreased by 0.2% to settle at 5,472, whereas the broader pan-European STOXX 600 index edged up by 0.3% to reach 559. Notably, shares in major industrial companies such as Siemens, Airbus, Schneider, and Rolls Royce declined between 2% and 3.5%, following a strong momentum earlier this week. Conversely, consumer defensive stocks saw significant gains across the region, with Danone, L'Oreal, and AB InBev each advancing more than 1%. On the monetary policy front, investors keenly anticipated the release of minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee’s (FOMC) latest meeting, hoping for insights into how the policymakers might respond to the recent reductions in payroll figures and the increase in the Producer Price Index (PPI) since their last gathering.