Europe midday: Shares in the red after EZ inflation, GDP readings
European shares were little changed at midday despite eurozone inflation and GDP data that placed the pace of the European Central Bank's rate tightening policy under more pressure.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was down around 0.14% at 1218 GMT. Shares in Asia were largely higher despite China factory activity missing expectations. Traders are also eyeing another rate hike from the US Federal Reserve on Wednesday.
Eurozone October inflation hit a fresh record high of 10.7%, according to a flash reading released on Monday, as energy and food prices continued to soar. The rise was higher than the 10.3% estimated by economists.
Energy costs surged to 41.9% from 40.7%, followed by food, alcohol and tobacco at 13.1%, up from 11.8% in September, while industrial goods inflation picked up to 6% and services to 4.4%, said Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.
Meanwhile, economic growth in the eurozone slowed in the third quarter. GDP rose by 0.2% on the previous quarter, down from 0.8% growth in the second quarter of the year.
Compared with the same quarter a year earlier, eurozone GDP increased 2.1%, down from 4.3% in the second quarter.
"The advance Q3 EZ GDP report shows that economic growth slowed from Q2, albeit much less than implied by the business surveys, on the back of stronger-than-expected outcomes in Germany and Italy and despite an outright fall in output in Austria and Belgium," said analysts at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
The European Central Bank has introduced rises of a combined 200 basis points in the last three months and has warned of more to come. However, markets are predicting a slower pace over fears more aggressive tightening could tip the currency bloc into recession.
ECB governing council member Klaas Knot on Sunday said the bank's next move in December is likely to be between 50 and 75 bps.
"We are not in even half-time yet," Knot said in an interview with Dutch TV programme Buitenhof, referring to the ECB's fight against surging inflation.
On the corporate front, Credit Suisse revealed that “qualified investors” had committed to buying more than 462 million new shares at a purchase price of 3.82 Swiss francs each as the embattled lender looks to raise SFR 4bn in capital.
The expected gross proceeds of the share placement are expected to total SFR 1.76bn, the bank said in a statement, with the Saudi National Bank (SNB) accounting for 307.6 million of the new shares to bring its holding of Credit Suisse stock to 9.9%.
Fresenius Medical Care shares were up despite the world's largest kidney dialysis provider cutting its outlook.
Shares in Royal Mail owner International Distribution Services jumped as postal workers called off planned strikes and the company was also told that no further action will be taken against it under the UK National Security and Investment Act in relation to Vesa Equity Investment SARL's shareholding.
Vesa had recently said that it held 22% of the company.
Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com