European markets advance supported by inflation data; Stoxx 600 up 1%

Inflation in France slowed to 6.7% in December from a record high of 7.1% in the previous month, tentatively. Numbers Posted Wednesday morning showed.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast year-over-year inflation, which was adjusted for comparisons in the eurozone, at 7.2%.

The biggest decline was in the energy sector, where prices rose 15.1% annually, down from 18.4% in November.

This comes after inflation slowed more than expected in Germany, which was reported on Tuesday HICP landing to 9.6% from 11.3%; And in Spain, which last week recorded a decrease of 5.8% from 6.7%.

Analysts are looking for signs that inflation has peaked in the major economies of the Eurozone. And whether this will affect the European Central Bank, which previously said Interest rates should rise “significantly”.

Analysts at ING said the path to significantly lower inflation rates will not be easy and will continue to depend on energy markets and agricultural challenges affecting food prices.

“[Germany’s] They said in a note that the inflation figures are not mitigating, however they are just a reminder that inflation in the Eurozone is still mainly an energy price phenomenon. The European Central Bank cannot and will not base its policy decisions on highly volatile energy prices.

Italy will release inflation figures on Thursday, followed by a flash estimate for the Eurozone on Friday.

– Jenny Reed

Swiss consumer prices rose 2.8% year-on-year and fell 0.2% month-on-month in December, The Swiss Federal Statistical Office said today.

It found that Swiss inflation averaged 2.8% in 2022, up from 0.6% in 2021. It attributed this annual rise to higher costs of petroleum products, gas, cars and house rents, which offset lower prices for medicine and fixed and mobile phone connections.

Swiss energy supplier BKW It jumped 6% in early trading to top the Stoxx 600 after predicting an “impressive” full-year result for 2022.

Italian manufacturer of steel tubes Tenaris It fell 5% to the bottom of the European blue-chip index.

– Elliott Smith

Skyrocketing energy costs have spurred investment in renewable energy around the world.

Swiss investment bank UBS has named 10 leading renewable energy players to capitalize on this trend and are set to outperform over the next year.

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– Ganesh Rao

The once-hot chip sector has struggled in 2022, but Wall Street appears to be becoming more bullish on semiconductor stocks for the year ahead.

Recently, many professionals have urged investors to Take a long-term view of the sectorDue to the importance of chips in many major secular directions.

Analysts have named one stock in particular as bullish, citing its earnings potential and future profitability.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

– Wizen tan

Goldman Sachs has out of consensus forecasts for the US economy in 2023.

“Our economists continue to believe that the United States will avoid a recession because the Federal Reserve successfully engineers a soft landing for the economy,” analysts wrote on Tuesday.

“These unanimous forecasts partly reflect our view that a period of below potential growth is sufficient to gradually rebalance the labor market and ease wage and price pressures,” the note said. “But it also reflects our analysis that the decline in fiscal and monetary tightening will contract sharply next year, contrary to the consensus view that the delayed effects of higher interest rates will lead to a recession in 2023.”

In addition, the bank today raised its forecast for Q4-22 GDP growth by 10 basis points to +2.1% on the back of the surprisingly strong release of construction spending in November.

“The disconnect between the resilience of the US economy in 2022 and the shorting in equities has been a major narrative in the past year,” Goldman said. “Whether this decoupling persists, or if the economy aligns with the direction of the market, or whether the market rebounds in the wake of an economic soft landing may be at least part of the story of 2023.”

– Carmen Renick

Stock markets have had a terrible 2022 as major indexes posted their worst performance in over a decade.

Market professionals warn investors Bumpy times aheadCNBC Pro used FactSet data to examine low-volatility stocks that not only beat the market in 2022, but are projected to rise even further this year.

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– Xavier Ong

European markets are heading for a higher open on Wednesday as investors await the latest US Federal Reserve meeting minutes, looking for signs of more interest rates to come.

United kingdom FTSE 100 index The index is expected to open 11 points higher at 7570, the German Dax 28 points higher at 14,227 in France kk Up 9 points at 6643 and Italy FTSE MIB It was up 31 points at 24,449, according to IG data.

In Europe, markets closed higher on Tuesday, buoyed after Germany published lower-than-expected inflation figures for December, falling to 9.6% y-o-y. Inflation data from France is due on Wednesday.

– Holly Ellytt