European shares fell after FOMC minutes dispelled policy change hopes

European stocks fell on Thursday ahead of the release of inflation data in the eurozone and after the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve meeting in December, which showed the US central bank’s commitment to curbing inflation.

The pan-European STOXX was down 0.3% by 0810 GMT, after rising more than 3% in the first three sessions of 2023.

Wednesday’s meeting minutes showed that officials worried about any “misperception” in financial markets of a relaxation in their commitment to fighting inflation, although they agreed that the central bank should slow the pace of its monetary tightening.