European markets give mixed signals ahead of Fed decision
  • President Trump defended his administration's stance on trade, telling the UN General Assembly that the States would no longer tolerate abuse on trade.

  • The Federal Reserve will conclude its September monetary policy meeting, with analysts expecting an announcement of a quarter point rate hike.

  • U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May has said that it wouldn't be in the national interest to put forward another general election during exit negotiations.

European stocks hovered around the flatline on Wednesday, as investors focused on an upcoming Federal Reserve decision.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was barely changed early afternoon with the different sectors moving in opposite directions. Autos were the top losers in afternoon deals, off by almost 1 percent. On Tuesday, President Donald Trump defended his administration's stance on trade, telling international leaders that the States would no longer tolerate abuse when it comes to trade.

German carmaker Daimler DAI-DE was among the biggest losers in the sector. The company said on Wednesday that it would appoint its first ever non-German boss, with current CEO Dieter Zetsche set to hand the reigns over to Swede Ola Kaellenius in 2019. Shares were off by 1 percent.

Looking at individual stocks, Bouygues EN-FR rose 2.6 percent and led the gains across Europe, after J.P. Morgan upgraded the stock to overweight from neutral and raised its price target to 46 euros ($54) from 42 euros.

Comcast updated markets players on Wednesday, announcing that it has increased its stake in Sky to 36.95 percent. This is after winning a bidding war over the U.K. broadcaster.

In other corporate news, European Union executive body the European Commission said on Wednesday that an antitrust decision on the proposed merger between German steelmaker Thyssenkrupp TKA-DE and Indian rival Tata Steel TATASTEEL-IN will be made by October 30.

Fed decision in focus

Market players are waiting for news from the U.S. Federal Reserve . The central bank will conclude the second and final day of its September monetary policy meeting, with analysts expecting an announcement of a quarter point rate hike .

Meanwhile, Brexit continues to keep European markets busy. On Tuesday, U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May has said that it wouldn't be in the national interest to put forward another general election during exit negotiations. This comes as May faces more and more pressure over the future of divorce negotiations between the EU and the U.K.

And investors continue to monitor politics in Italy , as worries mount over the new coalition government's upcoming budget. Rome will present its first budget and economic targets on Thursday, numbers which will set the stage for the government's first budget in 2019.