Despite the U.S. federal government officially shutting down after the Senate failed to reach an agreement on a last-minute spending bill, European stocks closed on a strong note on Wednesday, led by gains in the healthcare sector.
Tariff concerns eased after Pfizer struck a deal with the Trump administration to allow patients to purchase discounter prescription drugs through a new federal website.
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May 01, 2026 15:54 ET Central banks dominated the economics news flow this week with almost all major ones announcing their latest policy decisions and many boosted expectations for a rate hike in June. In other news, several countries released the preliminary data for first quarter economic growth. In the U.S., comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell were also in focus as his term ends this month.