European markets close higher after euro zone inflation data surprises

European bourses ended Wednesday in the green, with Germany's DAX up 0.5% and France's CAC 40 up 0.3%.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 was flat, while the regional benchmark Stoxx 600 index nudged 0.3% higher.

— Jenni Reid

German chemicals firm Wacker Chemie topped Stoxx 600 gains during afternoon trade, up 7.4% after analysts at UBS raised their target price on the stock to 137 euros ($148.23) from 130 euros.

U.K. telecoms group BT meanwhile fell 4.7% on an analyst price cut from UBS, to 100p ($1.26) from 110p.

— Jenni Reid

The S&P 500 kicked off Wednesday lower, putting the broad index on track for a third straight losing day.

The broad index lost 0.1% shortly after 9:30 a.m. ET, while the Nasdaq Composite tumbled 0.4%. The Dow slipped around 0.1%.

— Alex Harring

A technical committee of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies, collectively known as OPEC+, concluded its Wednesday meeting without recommending changes to the group's production policy, according to two delegates.

The sources could only speak anonymously due to the sensitivity of the talks.

The Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee can only recommend policy changes, which would have to be vetted by coalition ministers during a formal OPEC+ meeting.

The JMMC will next meet on June 1, according to one of the sources.

Some OPEC+ members in March agreed to extend 2.2 million barrels per day of voluntary crude output cuts into the second quarter of this year, which fall outside of the broader group's unanimously agreed production strategy. The broader group is reducing its output by a separate 2 million barrels per day until the end of 2024 as part of its formal policy.

— Ruxandra Iordache

Nick Nelson, head of equity strategy at Absolute Strategy Research, discusses strong U.S. equity market performance and whether it can continue.

Murat Ulgen, global head of emerging markets research at HSBC, discusses emerging markets with CNBC.

Finecobank shares were up some 6% by midday London time Wednesday, with reports that JPMorgan analysts had taken an "overweight" stance on the stock.

At the other end of the Stoxx 600 index, Austria's largest electricity provider Verbund was down 4.5% after a ratings downgrade.

—Matt Clinch

Inflation in the 20-nation euro zone eased to 2.4% in March, according to flash figures published on Wednesday.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected the rate to hold steady against the previous month at 2.6%.

Read our full story here.

—Jenni Reid

Turkey's annual inflation rose to 68.5% for the month of March, an increase on February's 67.1% inflation read, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute's report released Wednesday.

The monthly rise in consumer prices came out at 3.16%, led by education, communication, and hotels, restaurants and cafes, which saw month-on-month rises of 13%, 5.6%, and 3.9%, respectively.

On an annual basis, education again saw the highest cost inflation at 104% year-on-year, followed by hotels, restaurants and cafes at 95% and health at 80%.

— Natasha Turak

Several investors have been looking favorably at Japanese stocks in the past few months - and market strategist Matt Orton is no exception.

"Japan overall, has been a fantastic market ... Japan was the top performer within the Asian equity market complex," the chief market strategist at asset management firm Raymond James Investment Management, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia" on April 1.

One lesser known name stands out to him as a good play right now.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Amala Balakrishner

From the GameStop frenzy of 2021 to the recent surge in Reddit and Truth Social shares, many investors likely have a fear of missing out (FOMO) on these seemingly lucrative opportunities.

However, for investors that cannot stomach the risks linked to meme stocks, there are less volatile ways to capitalize on the trading phenomenon, investor says., according to Hannah Gooch-Peters, Global Equity Investment Analyst at Sanlam Investments.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more about those stocks here.

— Ganesh Rao

European markets are set to open lower Wednesday.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 27 points lower at 7,909, Germany's DAX down 25 points at 18,266, France's CAC 9 points lower at 8,121 and Italy's FTSE MIB down 18 points at 33,703, according to data from IG. 

Wednesday is light on the corporate earnings front, but inflation data is due out of the euro zone and Turkey.

— Karen Gilchrist