European equities struggled to benefit from a positive lead from Asia and Wall Street, where the Dow ended at a fresh record high overnight, helped by news that US President Joe Biden’s huge stimulus package had cleared its last hurdle in Congress.
“Investors will be hoping that the bank will address the rise in bond yields and flag its ability to cope with any sudden rise in inflation, although the lack of any coordinated fiscal stimulus in the eurozone to compare with the US makes these concerns less relevant for European assets.” But ECB chief Christine Lagarde’s press conference in Frankfurt will be scrutinised for clues on what it would take for the central bank to unleash more stimulus to ease fears of a premature end to cheap money.