London: European shares were flat in early trade on Wednesday, after upbeat manufacturing data from China and France was offset by continued worries over Greece’s ability to undertake austerity measures.
At 1:43pm, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was flat at 1,084.90 points. The index is up 27% from a 2011 low, hit in September.
“We think this rally is not necessarily over. European valuations continue to discount a lot of negativity,” said Guy Foster, head of portfolio strategy at Brewin Dolphin.
“But there will be a lot of focus for nine days on potential execution risks for the measures that Greece needs to put in place in order to receive the next tranche of the bailout.”
France’s manufacturing sector managed a marginal but unexpected return to growth in February after six months of contraction, suggesting greater economic resilience than seemed likely a few months ago, although the services sector weakened markedly.
PSA Peugeot Citroen, Europe’s no. 2 car maker, rose 8.3% after saying it was in talks over potential cooperations and alliances but did not name its possible partners, after media reports said it was in advanced discussions with General Motors.