(Reuters) -European shares nudged higher on Wednesday, led by industrial miners, while investors tracked signs of any progress on U.S. trade talks as the July tariff deadline nears.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index advanced 0.3% at 542.03 points, as of 0710 GMT. Other major regional indexes also traded higher.
U.S. President Donald Trump, on Tuesday, said he was not considering an extension of the July 9 deadline for countries to negotiate trade deals. He expressed optimism about a potential trade deal with India but was skeptical about reaching a similar agreement with Japan.
EU’s trade chief is expected to hold negotiations this week in Washington to avert higher U.S. tariffs.
European industrial miners rose 1.4%, while banks advanced 1.3%.
Meanwhile, the EU is blocking the British government’s attempts to join a pan-European trading bloc, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.
On the data front, euro-zone unemployment data for May is due later in the day.
In the U.S., Senate Republicans passed Trump’s massive tax-and-spending bill on Tuesday by the narrowest of margins. The legislation now heads to the House of Representatives for possible final approval.
Britain’s Spectris gained 5.1% after the scientific instruments maker accepted an improved takeover offer from U.S. private equity firm KKR.
(Reporting by Sukriti Gupta and Sanchayaita Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)
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