Stocks Slip on Google Breakup Risk, Rates Outlook – Europe Market Wrap

US futures fell on Wednesday as a result of indications the Federal Reserve will continue to reduce interest rates gradually and news that US authorities are considering an antitrust lawsuit against Alphabet Inc., the company that owns Google. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 contracts saw a 0.2% decline.

In premarket trading, Alphabet shares dropped by roughly 1.5% following the US Justice Department’s announcement that it may petition a federal judge to order Alphabet’s Google search engine to sell off a portion of its operations.

As companies exposed to China awaited word on the possibility of additional growth-boosting stimulus, the Stoxx 600 index in Europe remained unchanged. Luxury goods company Kering had a 1.3% increase in value on the announcement of a new CEO for the Gucci brand, while renewable energy firms saw a boost from an International Energy Agency report that forecasted a sharp increase in the capacity of renewable energy sources.

On a global scale, rate-setters are becoming increasingly dovish. Next week’s rate reduction by the European Central Bank is highly likely. Francois Villeroy de Galhau, a member of the Governing Council, stated. Rates were lowered by half a percentage point in New Zealand, quickening the pace of easing, while the central bank of India made room for its first reduction in four years.