Europe open: Stocks gain as traders wait on central banks
European stocks headed higher at the start of trading with central banks squarely in focus, especially the US Federal Reserve.
As of 0931 BST, the benchmark Stoxx 600 was higher by 0.523% or 2.02 points to 381.17, while the German Dax was gaining 0.45% or 55.78 points to trade at 12,492.58, alongside gains of 0.68% or 34.79 points to 5,175.39 in France's Cac-40.
Overnight, Wall Street finished on a mixed note despite relatively dovish remarks from two top officials at the US Federal Reserve, Governor Lael Brainard and Philly Fed president Patrick Harker.
Striking a similar note, before the opening bell the Press & Journal published an interview with the Monetary Policy Committee's Ben Broadbent who said he was not yet ready to vote for a hike in Bank Rate.
"In my opinion, it is a bit tricky at the moment to make a decision. I am not ready to do it yet," he said.
Yet what traders were most interested in were US central bank chair Janet Yellen's semi-annual report on Monetary Policy to the US House of Representatives's Financial Services Committee.
"Speculation has continued to grow as to the timing of when the Federal Reserve could start to pare down its balance sheet and whether this process would happen alongside the prospect of further rate rises.
"Such a move would in all probability be a little on the risky side, tightening policy from two different directions, and will be a process the Fed will need to be able to communicate effectively in the coming months," said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets.
In a media interview on Wednesday, French finance minister Edouard Philippe predicted the country's economy would expand at a 1.6% clip in 2017 followed by growth of 1.7% in 2018.
Wednesday's European economic calendar was light, with only euro area industrial production figures for May set for release at 1000 BST and Portuguese consumer price figures for June at 1100 BST.
Bank of Canada's interest rate decision at 1300 BST on the other hand was expected to attract a fair bit of attention, with rate-setters in Ottawa widely-expected to announce a 25bp hike in interest rates to 0.75%.
Fed chair Janet Yellen was scheduled to take the podium at 1500 BST. Her remarks would be followed later in the day by the release of the Fed's Beige book.
Engineering services group Bilfiger launched a profit warning, its first in two years.
German lender Deutsche Bank hived off a 5.5% stake in Heidelberger Druckmaschinen.
China's Fosun was still maintaining contacts aimed at possibly picking up a stake in French ski resorts and amusement parks operator Compagnie des Alpes, one of its directors said, with a few other consumer goods companies also on its radar.