European Shares Mixed In Cautious Trade

(RTTNews) - European shares were mixed on Wednesday after rallying in the previous session as the fragile Iran-Israel truce took hold.

U.S. President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy said late on Tuesday that talks between U.S. and Iran were "promising" and that Washington was hopeful for a long-term peace deal.

In economic releases, France's consumer confidence held steady in June and remained well below its long-term average, monthly survey data from the statistical office INSEE showed.

The consumer sentiment index stood at 88.0 in June, the same as in May. Economists had expected the score to rise to 89.0.

The NATO summit will be in focus later in the day, where leaders are due to finalize agreements on defense spending.

Investors also await U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's second day of testimony before the Senate for additional clues on the outlook for inflation and interest rates.

The pan-European STOXX 600 was marginally higher at 541.11 after climbing 1.1 percent to hit a one-week high and notch its biggest single-day jump in over a month the previous day.

The German DAX dipped 0.2 percent, France's CAC 40 was marginally higher and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was up 0.2 percent.

Wind turbine maker Nordex surged 1.6 percent after securing a contract from renewables developer Umweltgerechte Kraftanlagen GmbH & Co KG.

Automotive retailer Vertu Motors rallied 2.3 percent as it reported 7 percent growth in new car retail sales in the three months to May 31.

Defence contractor Babcock International soared 13 percent after reporting strong preliminary annual results and raising its dividend and revenue target.

Oxford Instruments, a provider of high-technology products and systems, rose 1.1 percent after announcing it will commence a share purchase program by June 24, 2026.