The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) and European stocks were lower on Tuesday, with Wall Street gaining after early losses, as traders digested the latest EU inflation figures. Inflation in the 20-nation eurozone fell slightly from 2.6% in May to 2.5%, amid declining energy prices.
Official figures from Eurostat showed that core inflation, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, was unchanged at 2.9%. Meanwhile, prices in British shops rose at the slowest pace in almost three years last month, according to industry figures that underscore how inflation has cooled.
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However, Tesla's (TSLA) share price was driven higher after the bell in New York, as investors cheered a smaller-than-expected 5% drop in vehicle deliveries in the second quarter.
The electric vehicle maker said price cuts and incentives boosted demand. It handed over 443,956 vehicles in the three months to 30 June, 4.8% lower than a year earlier, and up 14.8% from the prior quarter.
Elsewhere, traders remained cautious ahead of the UK general election on Thursday and the French second election round on 7 July.
Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at Capital.com, told Reuters: "Both potential outcomes of this election, whether a far-right or a far-left coalition, don’t give political stability. Both would lead to a lot of indecision, which can cause some concern for investors."
London’s benchmark index was 0.5% down, hitting its lowest in more than two weeks.
Germany's DAX (^GDAXI) dipped almost 0.8% and the CAC (^FCHI) in Paris headed 0.3% into the red.
The pan-European STOXX 600 (^STOXX) was 0.4% lower.
Wall Street pushed higher ahead of jobs data and amid comments from Fed chair Jerome Powell.
The pound was 0.25% higher against the US dollar (GBPUSD=X) at 1.2681.
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