European Shares Slip In Lackluster Trade

(RTTNews) - European shares traded lower on Wednesday as investors assessed a slew of earnings and awaited the Fed policy announcement later in the day for directional cues.

The downside, however, remained capped by upbeat German data and optimism surrounding upcoming U.S.-China trade talks.

Germany's factory orders grew more than expected in March on robust foreign and domestic demand, data from Destatis showed.

Factory orders advanced 3.6 percent month-on-month in March after remaining flat in February. Orders are forecast to grow 1.4 percent.

On a yearly basis, factory orders logged an expansion of 3.8 percent, in contrast to the 0.2 percent fall in February.

The pan European STOXX 600 slipped 0.3 percent to 534.70 after falling 0.2 percent on Tuesday to snap its 10-day winning streak.

The German DAX was marginally higher as Friedrich Merz of the Christian Democratic Union became the new Chancellor after the second round of Bundestag voting.

France's CAC 40 dropped half a percent and the U. K.'s FTSE 100 was down 0.3 percent. Vonovia SE, Germany's largest landlord, fell more than 1 percent after announcing that Luka Mucic would succeed Rolf Buch as its CEO by the end of 2025.

Veolia declined 2.2 percent. The French utility and resource management company has agreed to buy Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec's minority stake in its Water Technologies and Solutions subsidiary for $1.75 billion.

Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk jumped more than 6 percent after reporting a better-than-expected rise in first-quarter net profit.

German carmaker BMW rallied 3.2 percent after confirming its FY25 outlook.

Swedish builder Skanska fell 2.6 percent after first-quarter earnings came in below expectations.