* German shares rise on robust China trade data
* U.S. consumer price index jump more than expected
* Retail, luxury, tech lead gains
* Sweden's Dustin gains after deal to expand in Benelux
(Updates after U.S. inflation data, adds closing prices)
By Sagarika Jaisinghani and Susan Mathew
April 13 (Reuters) - European shares hovered just below
all-time highs on Tuesday, little changed by U.S. inflation data
that suggested the Federal Reserve's accommodative policy stance
would remain intact.
The pan-European STOXX 600 .STOXX closed up 0.1% and the
export-heavy German stock index .GDAXI also rose that much
after data showed China's exports grew at a robust pace in March
and import growth surged to its highest in four years.
Luxury .SXQP and other consumer stocks .SXRP led gains
on the STOXX 600, followed by technology stocks .SX8P .
The benchmark STOXX 600 has surged to record highs this
month after coming under pressure in March from rising bond
yields, as central banks globally maintained an accommodative
monetary stance despite fears of a jump in inflation.
Data on Tuesday showed inflation in the United States rose
more than expected, posting its biggest gain in more than 8-1/2
years in March as increased vaccinations and massive fiscal
stimulus unleashed pent-up demand. "But it hasn't unnerved markets because we've heard a lot of
soothing words from the U.S. Federal Reserve that any rise in
inflation is temporary," said Fiona Cincotta, senior financial
markets analyst at City Index.
The STOXX 600 has also lagged a recovery in its U.S.
counterpart due to a slow vaccination rollout and a new wave of
coronavirus infections on the continent.
Johnson & Johnson JNJ.N on Tuesday said it would delay the
rollout of its COVID-19 vaccine in Europe and was reviewing
cases of extremely rare blood clots in people after they
received the shot. "Any concern of slowing rollout expectations, especially
after J&J, could hit sentiment," Cincotta said.
Attention this week will also be on the start of the
first-quarter corporate earnings season, with major U.S. banks
JPMorgan Chase & Co JPM.N and Goldman Sachs Group Inc GS.N
due to report on Wednesday.
European earnings will kick into higher gear later in April
and analysts expect a 47.4% jump in earnings for STOXX 600
companies, according to Refinitiv IBES data. Much of the support
is likely to come from consumer cyclicals and industrial firms.
Britain's biggest sportswear retailer JD Sports JD.L rose
3% as it forecast profit growth for this year and announced
plans to ramp up warehouse capacity to fulfil online orders and
minimise disruptions from Brexit. Swedish IT solutions provider Dustin DUST.ST surged 17.4%
after it said it would buy Centralpoint, a seller of hardware
and software in the Benelux region, for 425 million euros
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Global stock valuations surge well above long term averages https://tmsnrt.rs/32alCjW
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