European Shares Mostly Lower; FTSE 100 Bucks Trend On Soft Inflation Data

(RTTNews) - European shares were mixed on Wednesday as investors digested a flurry of corporate earnings and closely watched the latest trade developments between the United States and China.

U.K. stocks outperformed as the British pound dropped after the release of soft inflation data.

U.K. consumer prices registered a stable growth in September, the Office for National Statistics reported.

Consumer prices rose 3.8 percent year-on-year in September, the same rate of growth as seen in August. Prices were expected to climb 4.0 percent.

A separate report revealed that input prices dropped unexpectedly by 0.1 percent in September, while the expected rate was +0.3 percent. Output prices remained flat compared to the forecast of 0.2 percent rise.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 slid 0.2 percent to 572.08 after gaining 0.2 percent on Tuesday.

The German DAX dipped 0.2 percent and France's CAC 40 shed 0.8 percent while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was up 0.7 percent.

German sportswear giant Adidas fell 2 percent despite reporting strong third-quarter results and raising its annual operating profit outlook.

Birkin bag maker Hermes tumbled 4.3 percent. The French luxury group signaled a slight improvement in key market China after reporting a 9.6 percent rise in third quarter sales.

Beauty conglomerate L'Oreal plunged 6.3 percent after reporting weaker-than-expected quarterly growth.

Ipsen soared 7 percent. The biopharma company upgraded its outlook after reporting better-than-expected Q3 results.

Barclays climbed 4.3 percent in London. The lender announced a surprise 500-million-pound ($670 million) share buyback and upgraded its performance target for the year.

Italian bank UniCredit declined 2.1 percent despite reporting higher profit and revenue in the third quarter.

Dutch paint and coating maker Akzo Nobel lost 4 percent after it reported a loss in its third quarter.

Brewer Heineken rose about 2 percent despite reporting a steep drop in beer sales in the third quarter.