FTSE 100 up 0.26%; DAX down 0.08%; CAC 40 down 0.81% (Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Milan, 02 May - European shares opened little changed in cautious trade, with the Stoxx 600 index down 0.14%, as trading resumed in the region after Labor Day.

Investors digested the US Federal Reserve's decision yesterday to hold interest rates steady at a range of 5.25% to 5.5% as widely expected amid sticky inflation.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell however downplayed the possibility of a rate hike as the central bank's next move, helping lift US stocks in overnight trade, with the Dow hitting a session high of more than 500 points.

Traders also continued to monitor fresh earnings reports from European companies including Hugo Boss, Novo Nordisk, AXA, ArcelorMittal, Orsted, Vestas, Pandora, Shell and Standard Chartered as the earnings season continues in full swing.

Traders also monitored fresh data from the region including Swiss inflation figures for April and Italian producer prices for March.

In European stock market dealings most sectors were mixed.

Banks rose, while technology and oil and gas stocks slid.

At 0730 GMT the FTSE 100 was up 0.26% at 8,142 points, the Frankfurt DAX was down 0.08% at 17,908 points. The Paris CAC 40 was down 0.81% at 7,920 points, while in Milan the FTSE MIB was up 0.09% at 33,778 points and in Madrid the IBEX 35 was up 0.29% at 10,885 points.

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(RADIOCOR) 02-05-24 09:39:36 (0195) 5 NNNN