European stock markets traded in a quiet session on Wednesday, helped by continued recovery in confidence but with higher US Treasury yields weighing on the tech sector.
At 3:55 a.m. ET (0855 GMT), the DAX in Germany traded 0.2 percent higher, while the CAC 40 in France and the UK's FTSE 100 were largely unchanged.
European indices have started the new year on a very favorable note, with the pan-European STOXX 600 climbing to all-time highs on hopes of an end to the pandemic soon, sending stocks priced treatment and return cycle.
However, the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield hit a six-week high on Tuesday, five-year yields hit a pandemic-time high and two-year yields hit two-year highs. the highest level since March 2020 on Monday. That is weighing heavily on tech companies, especially those with higher margins going forward. For example, shares of Prosus (OTC: PROSF) listed in the Netherlands fell 3.3%.
On the data calendar, the French Consumer Confidence index unexpectedly rose in December to hit its highest level since September, while the composite PMI for the Eurozone was revised slightly lower. 53.3 in December, from an initial estimate of 53.4.
Elsewhere, Tesco (OTC:TSCDY) shares rose 0.3% after data from market researcher Kantar showed Britain's biggest supermarket group had outpaced major rivals in the recent past. Important Christmas, reaching the highest grocery market share since January 2018.
Shares of Repsol (OTC: REPYY) rose 1.2% after the Spanish energy giant bought shale oil and gas assets from US firm Rockdale Marcellus for $222 million, while shares of Repsol Amundi (PA:AMUN) rose 0.8% after the French asset management company announced the completion of its acquisition of Lyxor from Societe Generale (OTC: SCGLY), creating the second-largest ETF business in Europe.
Late Wednesday, investors were looking for clues about when the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates for the first time by closely monitoring minutes of last month's central bank meeting.
Oil prices steadied on Wednesday as traders looked at a mixed report on US gasoline stockpiles at the same time as a group of top producers gradually lifted global output.
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