Dipo Olowookere
By Investors Hub
European stocks are trading mixed on Thursday as trade tensions persisted and the dollar rally lost steam in light of the dovish Fed minutes.
While the French CAC 40 Index has inched up by 0.1 percent, the German DAX Index is down by 0.2 percent and the U.K.?s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.4 percent.
On the data front, official data showed German GDP grew 0.3 percent sequentially in the first quarter, slower than the 0.6 percent expansion seen in the previous quarter but matching the provisional estimate published on May 15th,. Another survey showed that a gauge of German consumer confidence is set to weaken in June.
French manufacturing sentiment remained unchanged in May, while U.K. retail sales volume, including auto fuel, expanded 1.6 percent month-on-month in April, in contrast to a 1.1 percent fall in March, separate reports showed.
Daily Mail And General Trust has slumped after the publisher of the Daily Mail issued a cautious outlook. Swiss food firm Aryzta has also plunged after another earnings downgrade.
Automakers BMW, Daimler, Volkswagen, Renault and Peugeot have also moved to the downside after the U.S. launched a national security probe into car and truck imports.
Meanwhile, British gambling firm Paddy Power Betfair has rallied after agreeing to merge with the U.S. fantasy sports company FanDuel.
