European Stocks Falling Down, Focus on Powell

European stocks fell during early trading on Thursday, as investors awaited US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s speech for new clues about the path of monetary policy.

The Stoxx 600 index currently fell by 0.43% to 371.5 points, while “FTSE” fell by 0.42% to 6,019.82 points.

The German DAX index fell 0.45% to reach 13129.01 points, and the French CAC recorded losses of 0.73%, reaching 5010.79 points.

Powell is scheduled to speak on Thursday at a meeting of central bankers in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where he is expected to provide more clarity on the U.S. central bank’s efforts to renew its monetary policy approach, including a shift to targeting an average inflation rate of around 2% which would allow rates to stay very low for much longer.

The Euro is currently trading at 1.1830, up 0.01% against the US dollar.