European shares marked time on Tuesday after a two-day rise that left some regional indexes in technical “overbought’’ territory.
An unexpected rise in French industry morale helped put a floor on the market, however, building on a strong German business sentiment survey on Monday.
The euro zone Euro STOXX 50 was flat at 3,212.26 points. Germany’s DAX was up 0.1 per cent, while France’s CAC down 0.1 per cent.
All three indexes closed in “overbought’’ territory on Monday, based on their 7-day Relative Strength Index, a momentum indicator which compares the magnitude of rises and falls in prices.
“A small pullback (in the Euro STOXX 50) from here towards 3,190 is normal,’’ said Roelof-Jan van den Akker, a senior technical analyst an ING in Amsterdam.
“A short-term consolidation ... for a couple of weeks before the next rally starts would be my most likely scenario.’’
The broader FTSEurofirst 300 index of pan-European shares was flat at 1,386.23 points.
Energy companies weighed on the FTSEurofirst as Brent crude oil prices fell to $79.50 on the back of lower expectation of a significant output cut by OPEC.
Kingfisher was among top fallers on the index, shedding 2.4 per cent after Europe's No. 1 home improvement retailer posted an 11.8 per cent decline in third quarter profit, hurt by a weak French market and foreign currency movements.
Zodiac Aerospace was the top riser, up 4.4 per cent, after the maker of aircraft cabin interiors and systems predicted a gradual return towards normal levels of profitability in the current financial year.