European shares hold firm as AstraZeneca falls, tech stocks rise By Reuters

(Reuters) – European shares were flat on Tuesday, after rising 1% in the previous session, as investors digested a mixed set of economic data ahead of a widely expected ECB rate cut later in the week.

The pan-European index remained at 510.40 points at 0715 GMT.

AstraZeneca (NASDAQ: ) was the biggest disappointment, falling 5% after detailed trial results showed its experimental lung cancer drug did not significantly improve overall survival outcomes for patients.

The health care sector also lost 1%.

fell 0.1% after data showed inflation in the country slowed to 2% in August.

Elsewhere, UK employment figures showed average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, were 5.1% higher in the three months to the end of July than a year earlier.

The benchmark fell 0.2%.

The STOXX was supported by gains in technology companies. Capgemini and SAP SE (ETR:) gained 4.1% and 0.8% respectively after Oracle (NYSE:) reported upbeat results.

Hearing aid maker Amplifon fell 5% after Apple (NASDAQ:) announced its new Airpods can double as hearing aids.