London: European shares were flat on Tuesday, after a 1 per cent jump in the previous session, as investors parsed through a mixed set of economic data while awaiting a widely expected ECB rate cut later in the week.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was holding its ground at 510.40 points at 0715 GMT.
AstraZeneca was the biggest drag, sliding 5 per cent after detailed study results showed its experimental lung cancer drug did not significantly improve patients’ overall survival results.
The healthcare sector also lost 1 per cent .
Germany’s DAX ticked 0.1 per cent lower after data showed the country’s inflation slowed to 2 per cent in August.
Elsewhere, British labour data showed average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, were 5.1 per cent higher than a year earlier in the three months to the end of July.
It’s benchmark FTSE 100 was down 0.2 per cent .
The STOXX was supported by gains in technology companies. Capgemini and SAP SE gained 4.1 per cent and 0.8 per cent , respectively, after Oracle’s upbeat results.
Hearing aid maker Amplifon dropped 5 per cent after Apple said its new Airpods can work as hearing aids. (Reporting by Pranav Kashyap in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D’Souza)
