European Shares Retreat With Geopolitical Tensions In Focus

(RTTNews) - European stocks declined on Tuesday along with U.S. equity futures amid concerns about U.S. rates staying higher for longer.

The dollar retained its strength as investors awaited minutes of the Fed's latest policy meeting due to be released on Wednesday for additional cues on the rate outlook.

Geopolitical tensions also remained on investors' radar on the eve of U.S. President Joe Biden's trip to Kyiv and Russian President Vladimir Putin's speech on the Ukraine war.

In economic releases, investors ignored survey results from S&P Global showing that the flash PMI for the euro zone reached a nine-month high of 52.3 om February.

The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.7 percent at 461.30 after ending flat with a positive bias on Monday.

The German DAX and France's CAC 40 both fell around 0.8 percent, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was down 0.2 percent.

InterContinental Hotels fell 1.4 percent in London despite reporting an uptick in 2022 profits and announcing a share buyback.

Self-storage group Safestore declined 1.5 percent after reporting slower trading in its first quarter.

Medical technology firm Smith+Nephew jumped nearly 5 percent despite reporting a drop in annual profit.

Mining giant Antofagasta shed 2.3 percent on posting lower full-year profits and revenue.

Lender HSBC declined 1.6 percent despite posting better-than-expected fourth-quarter results.

French energy company Engie SA soared nearly 5 percent after reporting a jump in 2022 earnings and lifting its dividend payout by 65 percent, thanks to higher natural gas and power prices in the wake of supply disruptions and Western sanctions on Russian gas.