07:51 AM EDT, 05/15/2024 (MT Newswires) -- European bourses tracked moderately higher midday Wednesday, again testing all-time record highs, as traders awaited the pending April inflation report from Washington.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday told a banking event in Amsterdam that rate hikes were likely off the table from the US central bank, although monetary easing could be delayed.

Property stocks led gainers, while retail shares lagged.

Investors also eyed flat Wall Street futures and choppy closes overnight on Asian exchanges.

2024 consumer price inflation should post at 2.5% in the euro area, and 2.7% in the broader European Union, the European Commission predicted in its Spring Economic Forecast.

The euro area gross domestic product will expand by 0.8% in 2024, and by 1% in the EU, the European Commission estimated.

The pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 Index was up 0.3% mid-session, at a fresh record high.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Technology Index was 0.1% higher, and the Stoxx 600 Banks Index gained 0.3%.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Oil and Gas Index was off 0.2%, and the Stoxx 600 Europe Food and Beverage Index was flat.

The REITE, a European REIT index, rose 1.4%, but the Stoxx Europe 600 Retail Index declined 0.4%.

On the national market indexes, Germany's DAX was up 0.5%, and the FTSE 100 in London was 0.3% higher. The CAC 40 in Paris was off 0.1%, and Spain's IBEX 35 gained 0.5%.

Yields on benchmark 10-year German bonds were lower, near 2.47%.

Front-month North Sea Brent crude oil futures were down 0.6% at $81.92 per barrel.

The Euro Stoxx 50 volatility index was up 0.6% at 14.04, indicating below-average volatility for European stock markets in the next 30 days, a positive signal. A reading above 20 indicates choppier markets ahead, while below 20 suggests calmer exchanges.

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