Europe midday: Upbeat EZ growth fails to inspire investors as shares slip

(Sharecast News) - European markets were still lower on Tuesday as eurozone inflation data and GDP growth failed to inspire investors.

The benchmark Stoxx 600 index was down 0.25% to 507 in early deals with most regional bourses in the red. Britain's FTSE again bucked the trend, rising 0.52% to 8189.

There were further signs that the eurozone was starting to turn a corner as inflation held steady at 2.4% - although core inflation disappointed - and the single currency economy avoided recession in the first quarter of the year.

GDP across the eurozone expanded by 0.3% in January-March, according to data released by statistics body Eurostat, ending the technical recession of last year when the economy shrank by 0.1% in both the third and fourth quarters of last year.

Stronger-than-expected growth in Germany, France, Italy and Spain was the main driver, assisted by lower energy prices.

However, core inflation - which strips out volatile items such as food and energy - fell by less than expected to 2.7% in April, down from 2.9%, but ahead of forecasts of a larger fall to 2.6%.

"The economy is profiting from a more stable energy supply, with costs having substantially eased, resulting in lower inflation. Wage growth, in turn, has accelerated to make up for lost purchasing power, which is currently benefiting consumers," said ING senior eurozone economist Bert Colijn.

In equity news, UK investment platform Hargreaves Lansdown surged after reporting good momentum in April as clients invested at the start of the tax year to claim more benefits.

Whitbread also rose it announced a £150m share buyback and beefed up its dividend after seeing its bottom line jump by more than a third in the year to 29 February, and unveiled plans to cut 1,500 jobs as it turns underperforming restaurants into more hotels.

Swiss dental implants maker Straumann slumped despite reporting 15.1% organic sales growth for the first quarter, driven by high demand for its premium implants across its markets.

German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz posted a 30% annual fall in first-quarter earnings before interest and tax to €3.86bn below forecasts of €3.87bn for the period.

Danish brewer Carlsberg posted higher sales in the first quarter, slightly outperforming expectations.

Prudential declined even as it reported an 11% rise in first-quarter net new business profit.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com