Tariff Talks continue to dominate

Stocks in Europe hovered around the flatline on Thursday after Beijing implemented new retaliatory tariffs against the United States.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was marginally higher as tech equities were the outperformers, continuing the momentum seen on Wall Street on Wednesday. Basic resources and autos fell on the back of renewed trade tensions.

China officially retaliated Thursday against fresh duties, worth $16 billion, from the United States. This takes place at a time when officials from both countries meet in Washington to talk trade.

RyanairRyanair shares were the talk of the day as share price jumped nearly 7%. This was after the Irish pilots union Forsa said that an agreement has been reached with the company after a 22-hour session of talks.

French business activity saw a four-month high in August. The IHS Markit Index rose to 55.1 from 54.4 in the previous month. Elsewhere, business activity in the euro zone edged higher in August, but concerns over trade tensions hold back some manufacturers.

In the United States the S&P 500 was mixed in thin trading at the beginning of the session. The US dollar rose for the first time in six days, while the 10-year Treasury yield traded around 2.82% ahead of scheduled comments by Fed chairman Jerome Powell on Friday. The euro fell as data showed factories taking a hit from higher raw-material costs and global trade tensions.

The European Central Bank will continue with the plan to end asset purchases in December and lay the ground for a possible interest-rate hike in late 2019. The region’s “solid and broadbased” will make this possible although at the same time President Mario Draghi has noted that global uncertainties are “prominent.” The ECB will publish new economic projections for the euro zone on Sept. 13 after officials meet to set monetary policy.