European shares fall; US Fed rate verdict in focus

Record ID: 1984617

  • Title: European shares fall; US Fed rate verdict in focus
  • Date: 19th March 2025
  • Summary: FRANKFURT, GERMANY (MARCH 19, 2025) (REUTERS) TRADING FLOOR 'DEUTSCHE BOERSE' LOGO TRADERS DAX BOARD DAX START AT 23272.15 DAX INCREASE SHOWN ON BOARD VARIOUS OF TRADERS DAX GRAPH VARIOUS OF TRADERS DAX HIGH OF 23308.15 POINTS AT 09:07 AM (0807 GMT), PAN TO DAX LOWEST OF 23250.48 AT 09:05 AM (0805 GMT) CLOSE UP OF TRADER TRADING FLOOR (SOUNDBITE) (German) HEAD OF CAPITAL M
  • Embargoed:
  • Keywords: PUTIN STOCKS TRUMP
  • Location: FRANKFURT, GERMANY
  • City: FRANKFURT, GERMANY
  • Country: Germany
  • Topics: Europe,Economic Events
  • Reuters ID: LVA001996219032025RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: European shares slipped on Wednesday (March 19), a day after strong gains on Germany's approval for a massive spending surge, while focus shifted the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate decision.
    The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.3%, as of 0813 GMT, while Germany's blue-chip index fell 0.5%.
    A day after German parliament voted to approve a change to the debt brake, head of Capital Markets Analysis at Baader Bank, Robert Halver, said markets were stable and would now wait to see where investments would land.
    German equities had jumped on Tuesday after the country's parliament approved plans for a massive spending surge to revive economic growth and scale up military spending.
    Markets also remained steady following a call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
    "The stock market is not reacting to this so-called peace agreement...we don't believe that they are no longer going to bomb the entire region. It's not a deal at all, it's nothing, it's not even worth mentioning. We need a ceasefire, which would certainly cause a splash here. But we don't have one because Putin is certainly not stupid enough to fall for Trump," Halver said.
    European aerospace and defence index .SXPARO, the beneficiary of higher defence spending prospects, jumped 0.7% to a record high.
    Long-term growth prospects from fiscal reforms also enabled Barclays to raise its year-end target for the STOXX 600 index.
    Meanwhile, the Fed is widely expected to keep rates on hold later in the day. A similar move is also expected from the Bank of England on Thursday.
    Basic resources .SXPP led losses among sectors, falling 0.7%, followed by European banks .SX7E, which lost 0.5% after closing at an all-time peak in the prior session.
    (Production: Timm Reichert, Laura Urraca-Makuch)
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