Heineken has finished at the top of the AEX index. The share ended 2.3 percent higher. The brewer responded to figures from industry peer AB InBev, the maker of beer brands such as Jupiler, Corona, Leffe and Budweiser. That company sold more beer last year and saw its turnover increase. However, the volume fell unexpectedly in the fourth quarter. The expectations for this year were also disappointing.
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Nevertheless, AB InBev in Brussels was set 0.5 percent higher. Investors became more convinced by the expectations of the Belgian-American company that Heineken is in good shape. Chip company Besi was at the bottom of the main funds in Amsterdam with a minus of 2.2 percent.
Inflation
Inflation in the euro area cooled slightly to 8.5 percent in February, but was higher than hoped. Prices for food and drink, alcohol and tobacco in particular continue to rise sharply. The so-called core inflation, which does not include the volatile prices of energy and food, even reached a new record level of 5.6 percent in February. The European Central Bank (ECB) will therefore have to raise interest rates further to combat inflation. Higher interest rates usually put pressure on stock prices.
While the European stock markets still fell in the morning due to the latest inflation figure from the eurozone, traders shook off interest-rate worries during the course of the day. For example, the AEX ended with a plus of 0.8 percent at 755.17 points. The MidKap closed 0.1 percent higher at 1016.02 points. The stock exchanges in Frankfurt, London and Paris rose to 0.7 percent.
Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (minus 1.1 percent) announced that it had received approval from stock exchange operator Euronext to delist the shares in Amsterdam. As a result, the real estate group will no longer be part of the AEX index from March 9, but will remain in the French CAC40 index. The last trading day in Amsterdam is April 27.
Euro dollar
Ebusco fell 0.7 percent. The manufacturer of electric buses has been awarded an order for 23 buses in Sweden. The contract with the Swedish company Svealandstrafiken also includes an option to purchase an additional 41 buses. In Frankfurt, the German chemical company Covestro fell 6.2 percent after disappointing results.
The euro was worth $1.0593 against $1.0675 the day before. A barrel of US oil cost 0.5 percent more at $ 78.11. Brent oil became 0.1 percent more expensive at $ 84.64 per barrel.
