European Stocks Close Notably Lower

(RTTNews) - European stocks closed notably lower on Tuesday as investors chose to lighten commitments ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement, and the release of U.S. consumer price inflation data.

Markets also digested U.K. employment data and corporate news. Developments on the political front remained on the radar as well.

The UK unemployment rate rose slightly in three months to April and wage growth remained strong, the Office for National Statistics reported today.

The unemployment rate rose to 4.4% in the three months to April from 4.3% in three months to March. The rate was forecast to remain unchanged at 4.3%.

The Fed is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged, but traders will pay closer attention to Fed officials' updated projections for the economy and rates.

The pan European Stoxx 600 dropped 0.93%. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 ended down 0.98%, Germany's DAX drifted down 0.68% and France's CAC 40 lost 1.33%. Switzerland's SMI closed lower by 0.53%.

Among other markets in Europe, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain and Sweden ended weak.

Iceland and Turkiye closed higher.

In the UK market, Antofagasta, Standard Chartered, Marks & Spencer, Admiral Group, Unite Group, Barclays Group, Sainsbury (J), Land Securities, HSBC Holdings, Natwest Group, Schrodders and Glencore lost 2 to 4.3%.

Rio Tinto ended nearly 2% down. The mining giant agreed to acquire Mitsubishi Corp's 11.65 percent stake in Boyne Smelters for an undisclosed sum.

Hikma Pharmaceuticals rallied about 2.25%. Rentokil Initial, Convatec Group, ICG and RS Group gained 1 to 1.5%.

In Germany, Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, Rheinmetall, Fresenius, Adidas, Zaland, Bayer, MTU Aero Engines, Vonovia, Volkswagen, Deutsche Post, Allianz and Siemens Energy lost 1 to 3%.

Covestro climbed nearly 7%. Brenntag, Symrise, Sartorius and RWE posted moderate gains.

In the French market, Societe Generale dropped about 5% after reports that the French lender is facing hurdles in selling its securities services unit.

BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole, Unibail Rodamco, Vinci, ArcelorMittal, Veolia, Kering, Thales, Teleperformance, Engie and Renault lost 2 to 4%.

Carrefour and Edenred closed notably higher.