The lights of Frankfurt's bank skyline shone in the final light.
Boris Roesler | Picture Alliance | Getty Images
LONDON – European stocks edged higher on Tuesday, with mining stocks rising on hopes of an interest rate cut.
Pan-European Stoke 600 It was up 0.04% at 11:10 a.m. London time, having risen from earlier highs, with all major regional indexes rising. Mining stocks rose 0.9% and auto stocks gained 0.96%, although sectors including retail traded in negative territory.
Copper prices hit a nearly six-week high on Tuesday, with three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rising 0.92% to trade at $9,274.50 a ton at 11:05 am. This comes after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell gave his strongest hint yet on Friday that the central bank will cut interest rates at its September 18 meeting. Lower interest rates tend to spur demand for commodities like metals.
European stock markets were mixed on Monday, when UK markets were closed for a national bank holiday.
Investors continued to weigh geopolitical risks after Israel and Hezbollah struck each other over the weekend, raising concerns about a wider conflict in the Middle East. Uncertainty pushed oil prices higher on Monday, but gains eased on Tuesday.
Brent crude oil futures fell 0.90% to $80.71 a barrel at 10:50 am London time, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 1.02% to $76.65 a barrel.
In terms of European data, german statistics office The country's final second-quarter gross domestic product was announced on Tuesday, saying it fell 0.1% quarter-on-quarter, in line with initial expectations.
Elsewhere, The British Retail Consortium said on Tuesday In August, UK store prices fell into deflationary territory for the first time in almost three years. The industry body said store prices fell 0.3%, down from last month's 0.2% inflation rate.
Also on Tuesday, the Hungarian central bank will announce an interest rate decision.