Stimulus hopes lifts European stocks slightly

European stocks were up slightly earlier on Wednesday after Germany and France agreed to roll out additional stimulus, lifting hopes of an economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Germany’s coalition parties have pledged to roll out a stimulus package amounting up to €10 billion, while Prime Minister Jean Castex said that France is set to reveal its economic recovery plan on September 3.

However, Frankfurt’s DAX only gained 0.2%, while Paris CAC remained unchanged as investors awaited U.S. Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech in the Jackson hole Symposium on Thursday in hopes to find signals of how the central bank would safeguard an economic recovery.

The pan-European STOXX 600 inched up by 0.1%, capped by concerns of another resurgence of COVID-19 cases in Europe.

Data from the past week has dampened the economic outlook for a recovery in the Eurozone, limiting the STOXX 600 almost 15% below its all-time high.