Europe markets close narrowly higher after euro zone inflation falls below target

 

STOXX Europe 600

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548.42+0.50 (+0.09%)

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Stoxx 600 index.

The euro dropped 0.56% against the U.S. dollar after data showed inflation in the euro zone eased to a cooler-than-forecast 1.9% in May, below the European Central Bank’s 2% target. The figures supported expectations for a 25-basis-point rate cut by the ECB at its meeting on Thursday, with some economists suggesting a follow-up rate cut in June now looks more likely.

Tomorrow we’ll be monitoring talks between European Commissioner for Trade Maros Sefcovic and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, who are due to meet in Paris around 9 a.m. local time. It’s also the day U.S. President Donald Trump’s hastily announced hike in duties on steel imports to 50% — expected to fuel domestic inflation and rock the struggling European steel industry — will come into effect.

CNBC will be broadcasting from SuperReturn in Berlin, one of the world’s largest gatherings of the private equity industry, with guests including Carlyle’s Head of Global Credit Mark Jenkins and Bain’s EMEA private equity head Alexander Schmitz. See you then.

— Jenni Reid

52 Min Ago

S&P Global has made 26 negative rating actions due to tariffs

Ratings agency S&P Global has made 26 negative ratings actions, including eight downgrades, five CreditWatch negative placements and 13 outlook revisions due to tariffs since the start of March through to the end of May.

Data from S&P published in a report Tuesday showed 24 of the 26 entities were corporations, 18 of which were based in the U.S., including Fender Musical Instruments Corp. — downgraded from stable to negative — and Conair Holdings — downgraded to developing from negative.

Outside of the U.S., Slovakia’s sovereign rating was cut to negative from stable, while China’s Geely Holding, automaker Volvo’s parent company, was also cut to negative from stable.

European firms impacted included Dutch chemicals firm Pearls, and window coverings manufacturer Hunter Douglas Finance.

— Jenni Reid

2 Hours Ago

Muted start for Wall Street

U.S. markets have seen a muted open, with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average both down by around 0.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.1%.

— Jenni Reid

4 Hours Ago

How tourists alerted this fund manager to sell Moncler before its stock plunge

Fund manager Giles Parkinson of Trinity Bridge sold shares of luxury retailer Moncler in early March and avoided steep losses in the weeks following as the stock slid.

Parkinson’s caution wasn’t borne out of analyst reports, hushed industry whispers, or traditional financial modeling, but from what he called a “good short-term guide to luxury industry writ large”: the spending patterns of international tourists.

His thesis was confirmed when Moncler reported its first quarter 2025 results on April 16. While not disastrous, it painted a clear picture of a company navigating choppier waters.

Read more about how the fund manager arrived a