Europe opens lower ahead BoE rate decision
Major European stock market indexes opened lower on Thursday, ahead of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee meeting that will determine future rate hikes, as the country's annual inflation reached 9% in May, significantly higher than the BoE's target of 2%.
Following the announcement of a 75-point hike in the US Federal Reserve's interest rate, the British and Swiss central banks will announce their rate decisions later today. In addition, Italy is expected to release the most recent inflation data, as the European Central Bank expects inflation to fall in the second half of the year.
London's FTSE 100 decreased by 0.42% in the opening session, with Persimmon Plc as its worst performer, plunging 6.41%. The CAC 40 declined by 0.44%, as the Cie Generale des Etablissements Michelin SA sank 74.72%. Frankfurt's DAX plunged by 0.32% as Zalando SE pulled the index down by 5.10%. Italy's FTSE MIB was down by 0.47% at the opening bell.
The euro was 0.35% lower against the dollar, selling at $1.04068 at 9:10 am CET. The pound sterling was down by 0.67% compared to the dollar, changing hands to $1.21007 a minute later.