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HSBC Holdings (NYSE:HSBC) dropped 1.3% after its annual profits fell sharply due to the COVID-19 pandemic, while it unveiled a revised strategy focused mainly on wealth management in Asia.
The benchmark euro zone stock index gained 0.1%, with energy and travel stocks gaining the most.
Investors await the testimony of the U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell later in the day where most analysts expect Powell to reiterate the Fed’s commitment to maintain a dovish policy.
German healthcare group Fresenius fell 1.3% after it narrowed down its 2021 sales growth forecast and said it would launch a cost-cutting program, while cement-maker HeidelbergCement (DE:HEIG) dropped 1.2% even after preliminary results showed core profit was up 6% last year.
