European Shares Rise On China Optimism

(RTTNews) - European stocks opened higher on Wednesday, as optimism surrounding China's reopening offset lingering worries about slowing global growth and interest rates staying high for a longer period.

After Fed Chair Jerome Powell refrained from commenting on rate policy at a symposium, investors now await the release of U.S. inflation data on Thursday for additional clues on the rate outlook.

The pan European STOXX 600 edged up 0.2 percent to 446.38 after declining 0.8 percent on Tuesday.

The German DAX gained 0.3 percent, France's CAC 40 index added 0.2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 rose 0.4 percent.

Higher commodity prices lifted miners, with Anglo American, Antofagasta and Glencore climbing 2-3 percent. Oil & gas stocks such as BP Plc and Shell were seeing modest gains.

Supermarket group Sainsbury's fell nearly 2 percent as investors react to its chief's comments on price cuts, inflation and energy costs.

Bayer rallied 2 percent on a Bloomberg report that activist investor Bluebell Capital Partners has built a stake in the pharmaceutical company.

Luxury group LVMH rose over 1 percent after announcing a leadership shuffle. Specialty chemical company Sika tumbled 3 percent despite the company backing its earnings guidance for the fiscal year of 2022.

Wind turbine maker Nordex AG jumped 2 percent after bagging a contract from SSE Renewables to supply 29 N117/3600 turbines for the "Yellow River" wind farm in Ireland.

Ferrexpo was little changed. The iron ore pellets manufacturer with operations in central Ukraine reported sharply lower production in its fourth quarter and fiscal 2022 mainly due to loss of power amid the ongoing issues related to Russia's invasion.