European shares were little changed in early trade on Friday, with concerns over U.S. economic growth and downbeat comments from a Federal Reserve official prompting investors to stay cautious.
At 8:15 a.m., the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was flat at 1,046.88 points after opening lower and falling in the previous two sessions. The index was on track to record its best monthly gain since March.
“What I see in this market is a fight between macro-economic data and better-than-expected company results,” said Koen De Leus, economist at KBC Securities.
“We are at a point where the technical picture has improved considerably, but the problem is that the S&P 500 index doesn’t want to break through the 200-day moving average. It’s a worrying sign and if it stays like this for too long, then we can expect to go down again.”
The STOXX Europe 600 banking index fell 0.1 percent, while Barclays , BNP Paribas and Royal Bank of Scotland were down 0.4 to 1.3 percent.
Investors stayed cautious ahead of a government report, which is expected to show at 1:30 p.m. that U.S. economic growth likely slowed in the second quarter. St. Louis Federal Reserve bank President James Bullard’s comments on Thursday that he is worried about the risks the U.S. might fall into a Japan-style quagmire of falling prices and investment also hurt sentiment.
