Europe close: Stocks move in tight ranges as investors await Thursday's ECB meeting

European equity markets edged slightly on Wednesday, as investors sifted through a raft of corporate earnings ahead of Thursday’s eagerly-awaited European Central Bank meeting.

The benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index ended the session flat, while Germany’s DAX rose 0.89% and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.46%.

As of 1639 BST, the euro was broadly flat against the dollar and the yen but lost 0.22% against the pound, while Brent crude slid 1.04% to $48.20.

“Although we doubt that the ECB will alter the stance of policy at Thursday’s meeting, we think that concerns over the inflation outlook and risks from emerging markets will prompt the central bank to step up the pace of its asset purchases before long,” said analysts at Capital Economics.

“This may now be partly, or even largely, discounted in the foreign exchange market but we would be surprised if there were no effect on the euro from such an announcement.”

In company news, Italian luxury car maker Ferrari jumped 15% on its first day of trading in New York, while shares in Fiat Chrysler, which owns an 80% stake in the group, slid 3.08%.

“For Fiat, it has now accessed a new pool of liquidity to service its substantial debt ahead of a possible 2016 GM merger,” said IG’s market analyst Joshua Mahony.

“For new Ferrari shareholders, there will be substantial interest in exactly where the company goes from here.”

Credit Suisse slid 3.78% after the Swiss banking giant announced a capital increase as it posted weaker-than-expected results for the third quarter.

Net income at the Swiss lender fell to 779m Swiss francs from 1.03bn in the year ago period, falling short of consensus estimates of 858m.

Swiss apparel and accessories producer Swatch Group lost 0.46% after the group chief executive, Nick Hayek, said full-year sales are expected to be broadly flat compared to 2014, as the strong franc weighs on exports.