European Shares Rise as Investors Focus on Fed Rate Cut Decision

European stocks advanced on Friday and were poised for weekly gains, while investors shifted their focus to the US Federal Reserve ahead of a long-awaited monetary easing at its meeting next week. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.5% at 514.4 points, with France's CAC 40 rising 0.3% after consumer prices in the region's second-largest economy rose 2.2% year-on-year in August, in line with its preliminary reading. Miners rose 0.8%, as copper prices hit a two-week high on buying ahead of a Chinese holiday and amid stimulus hopes after Chinese President Xi Jinping pushed for measures to boost economic growth. After the European Central Bank (ECB) lowered its deposit rate to 3.5% on Thursday, policymakers do not see an interest rate cut in October, and investors are now wagering on the size and extent of the rate cut by the US central bank next week. Source: Qatar News Agency