Europe's main stock markets retreated slightly at mid-session on Wednesday, with little change after two consecutive sessions of rebound and in the absence of Wall Street, which is closed on June 18.

In Paris, the CAC 40 lost 0.52% to 7,589.04 points at around 1103 GMT, while in Frankfurt, the Dax was down 0.20%. In London, on the other hand, the FTSE 100 gained 0.13%.

The EuroStoxx 50 index was down by 0.33%, the FTSEurofirst 300 by 0.05% and the Stoxx 600 by 0.05%.

The only major indicator on the day's agenda, British inflation in May returned to its 2% target for the first time in almost three years, which should be welcomed by the Bank of England (BoE), which meets on Thursday.

However, the UK data show that underlying price pressures remain strong, prompting caution on monetary policy.

Markets expect the BoE's first monetary easing to take place in September or October.

"Services inflation remains high, so core CPI is falling more slowly than headline inflation, and inflation could actually rise again later this year - so the way forward is not straightforward," warns Shaun Port, Chase UK analyst.

In the Eurozone, investors are keeping a close eye on the turbulence linked to the French legislative elections. However, Barclays analysts maintained their positive view of European banks on Wednesday.

VALUES IN EUROPE

In Paris, Dassault Systèmes lost 2.45%, the worst performer on the CAC 40, as Exane BNP Paribas lowered its recommendation to "underperform" from "neutral", believing that the group's five-year targets are under pressure.

Société Générale was down 0.1%, as the bank did not benefit from the announcement of the sale of its neobank Shine to the Danish group Ageras. BNP Paribas and Crédit Agricole are also in the red.

However, the European banking sector (+0.07%) continues to recover from the sharp fall linked to political risk in France.

The travel and leisure sector gained 0.48%, boosted by French hotel group Accor, which advanced 1.7% after Barclays upgraded its recommendation on the stock to "overweight" from "in-line weighting".

German solar power components group SMA Solar Technology, which issued a profit warning for the year, fell back 26%.

RATES

Eurozone government bond yields rose slightly, while the risk premium demanded by investors to hold French bonds remained stable.

The yield on the ten-year German Bund edged up by 1.2 basis points to 2.4050%, while that on the OAT with the same maturity gained 2.2 basis points to 3.1418%.

The spread between French and German 10-year yields stands at 72 basis points, down from the 80+ reached last week.

CHANGES

The dollar loses 0.08% against a basket of reference currencies, while the euro, still under pressure from the risks associated with the French elections, recovers slightly, gaining 0.09% to $1.0748.

OIL

Oil prices were fairly stable on Wednesday, remaining close to their highest levels for seven weeks.

Brent crude rose 0.05% to $85.37 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) lost 0.25% to $81.37.

(Some data may be slightly delayed)

(Written by Diana Mandia)