Europe open: Shares lower as investors sit tight ahead of Fed meeting

European shares opened slightly lower on Wednesday as investors held fire ahead of a US Federal Reserve decision on policy later in the day.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was down 0.05% in early trade with major bourses looking for direction. The French CAC 40 was up 0.33% on the back of strong results from luxury group LVMH.

Germany’s DAX was down 0.33% as German consumer sentiment plummeted; hitting -15.6 against the -7.8 forecast as extending a stricter lockdown to contain the coronavirus pandemic put a halt to shopping.

Investors were also eyeing a bumper day of US corporate earnings from Apple, Facebook and Tesla.

In equity news, Danish medical equipment maker Ambu led the gainers after the company reported a 39% rise in first quarter revenue. The shares rose 14.78% on the news.

Evotec shares rose after the US Department of Defence had awarded the German drug maker a $28.6m contract to produce monoclonal antibodies for use in the development of a treatment for Covid-19.

LVMH rose as booming sales at fashion brands like Louis Vuitton, particularly in China, helped to cushion the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.