Trading economics-

European equity markets extended their gains on Wednesday after an unexpected slowdown in the Eurozone inflation rate bolstered the case for the European Central Bank to start lowering borrowing costs from record highs. The latest CPI report revealed that the bloc's headline inflation dropped to 2.4% in March, falling short of the market consensus of 2.6%, while the core rate eased more than expected to 2.9%, marking its lowest level since February 2022. Meanwhile, ECB policymaker Robert Holzmann said that the bloc's central bank might initiate interest rate reductions as early as June as inflation might decline faster than anticipated. In corporate developments, Siemens clarified that it has no plans to make an offer for British engineering firm Renishaw, while Genmab announced its acquisition of privately owned ProfoundBio for $1.8 billion. Swiss chemicals maker Lonza requested a trading halt for its shares pending the release of a statement.