Banks, construction shares lead rebound in Europe’s STOXX 600

(Reuters) – Europe’s main stock index opened higher on Wednesday after a three-session decline, as construction and bank stocks led an overall market recovery, with most safe-haven bids taking a backseat amid easing geopolitical concerns.

The pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.6%, as of 0815 GMT, after touching a three-month low on Tuesday amid an investor rush to safe-haven assets.

The Swiss franc and U.S. government bond prices dipped, while the dollar touched a one-week low in intraday trade.

A day after Russia lowered its threshold for a nuclear strike, Reuters reported Vladimir Putin’s openness to discuss a Ukraine ceasefire deal with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, which rules out major territorial concessions and Kyiv’s plans to join NATO.

Focus is also on the U.S. President-elect’s administration appointments, including the search for Treasury Secretary. Wall Street CEO Howard Lutnick will lead Trump’s trade and tariff strategy.

Meanwhile, UK stocks underperformed regional peers after domestic inflation came in above the 2% target last month, underscoring the Bank of England’s cautiousness on rate cuts.

Among single stocks, Sage Group jumped 17% after better-than-expected full-year operating profit and the software firm’s expectations of continued margin progress this year.

La Française des Jeux fell 5.5% after Credit Agricole Assurances unveiled plans to sell 2.2% of the French gaming group’s share capital.

(Reporting by Ankika Biswas in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)