LIVE MARKETS-STOXX hovers around flat, Mideast escalation keeps mood tense
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STOXX HOVERS AROUND FLAT, MIDEAST ESCALATION KEEPS MOOD TENSE
The STOXX 600 .STOXX is hovering around flat on Wednesday, buoyed by higher defence and aerospace stocks, as escalation in the Middle East continue to fuel market angst.
A basket of defence stocks .SXPARO was last up 1.7%, the best performing sector, with euro zone banks .SX7E a distant second, up 0.5%.
Airbus AIR.PA, the world's largest planemaker, is the stand-out, up 3.7%, after saying its 2025 guidance remains unchanged and it is targeting a dividend payout of 30%-50%. The UK's Melrose Industries MRON.L is not far behind, up 3.1% near the top of the broader index.
At the top of the STOXX 600 is German packaging and medical equipment maker Gerresheimer GXIG.DE up 6.7% after it said KPS and Warburg are still in talks for a potential bid.
On the flipside, healthcare names are keeping a lid on further gains with the basket .SXDP off 0.7%, weighed on by Denmark's Coloplast COLOb.CO down 1.8% and the UK's GSK GSK.L, dropping 1.3%
Markets are looking ahead to a Federal Reserve meeting set for later with expectations for no change to the base rate. Elsewhere, Sweden's central bank cut its key interest rate to 2.00% from 2.25% as expected.
On the data front, British inflation slowed as expected in May, but food prices shot up at the fastest rate in more than a year.
(Lucy Raitano)
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FOR WEDNESDAY'S OTHER LIVE MARKETS POSTS
EUROPE BEFORE THE BELL: SLIGHTLY HIGHER AS MIDDLE EAST TENSION FLARES CLICK HERE
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