Europe midday: Shares flat ahead of US job numbers

(Sharecast News) - European markets were flat at middaas investors turned their attention to weekly US jobs data and digested interest rate news from Europe and the US.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 barely moved the needle at 503.09 after hitting record highs on Thursday as the European Central Bank revised down its forecast for inflation this year to 2.3% from 2.7% and held interest rates at 4%.

"Wall Street raced forward last night, with both the S&P 500 and NASDAQ indices rising strongly after Fed Chairman Jay Powell, in testimony to the Senate Banking Committee, said that the Fed was not far from having confidence that inflation was sustainably back to its 2% target," said Steve Clayton, head of equity funds at Hargreaves Lansdown.

"That would be the trigger for beginning to cut interest rates, bringing relief to mortgage holders and businesses across the US. Rate cuts are likely 'at some point this year' said Powell and traders promptly pushed bond yields lower at the short end of the curve in anticipation of rate cuts to follow."

In economic news, German industrial output rose 1% in January, beating expectations of the 0.5% expected, while construction and manufacturing output also rose 2.7% and 1.1%, respectively.

In equity news, shares in paper and packaging maker DS Smith gained after it agreed to be taken over by larger rival Mondi in a £5.1bn deal. Mondi shares fell on the news.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com