Europe midday: Investors pause for breath ahead of ECB rate decision

European stocks were flat on Thursday as traders took a cautious stance ahead of the European Central Bank’s interest rate decision.

At midday the benchmark Stoxx 600 Europe was down 0.18% and Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 were both flat.

Meanwhile oil prices gained with West Texas Intermediate up 0.9% at $51.53 per barrel and Brent crude rising 0.8% at $54.34.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) said that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) was facing rising production from its rivals despite previous agreements to partake in the production cuts. The organisation estimated that non-OPEC producers will increase production by 175,000 barrels a day for this year, largely from the US.

The ECB rate announcement is at 1245 GMT, with no change expected to headline rates or the bond-buying programme.

The eurozone current account surplus rallied in November, according to data from the European Central bank.

The surplus reached an all-time high of €36.1bn in November, up from €28.3bn in the previous month. The surplus was 3.4% of the eurozone’s gross domestic product, beating the 3.1% figure a year ago.

On the corporate front, Zodiac Aerospace shares rocketed after Safran agreed to buy the company for €8.5bn in a deal that will create the world’s third largest aerospace supplier.

Italy’s UBI Banca was a high riser after signing a deal to buy three smaller Italian banks, while Remy Cointreau rallied as its third-quarter revenue surpassed analysts’ expectations thanks to strong demand in the US.

Anglo-Australian miner BHP Billiton ticked higher after saying it and its Brazilian iron-ore joint venture with Vale SA, Samarco Mineracao, have set a 30 June deadline with federal prosecutors in Brazil to settle a $47.5bn claim related a dam failure in November 2015 which killed 19 people.

Moneysupermarket.com surged after saying it expects to deliver strong full-year results, with revenue ahead by around 12% on the year.

On the downside, Gazprom was in the red after saying it swung to a net profit in the third-quarter even as revenue fell.

French retailer Carrefour lost ground despite reporting better-than-expected fourth-quarter sales.

In London, Royal Mail slumped as the dwindling volume of letters to Father Christmas and other festive missives continued to hold back its sales, with revenues remaining flat in the nine months to 25 December.