Anjali Sundaram | CNBC LONDON — European markets fell slightly on Wednesday as fresh hawkish comments from a U.S. Federal Reserve policymaker kept investors on edge. The pan-European Stoxx 600 slipped 0.2 percent in early trade, with retail shares down 0.5 percent as most sectors and major bourses opened in negative territory. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari on Tuesday reiterated the central bank’s commitment to bring inflation under control by tightening monetary policy and said his biggest fear is that the persistence of price pressures is being underestimated. The comments came as markets braced for a much-anticipated speech by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell on Friday, which will address the central bank’s tightening path, after the annual economic symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Asia-Pacific shares were mixed on Wednesday after the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 posted a third straight day of losses in the previous session. China’s Shenzhen Component led losses regionally. U.S. stock futures were lower in early premarket trading on Wednesday as Wall Street looked poised for further losses ahead of Powell’s speech on Friday. Back in Europe, investors will study the European Central Bank’s accounts of its latest monetary policy discussions, due out on Wednesday, along with a reading of French consumer confidence for August. Having hit a 20-year low of $0.9901 on Tuesday, the euro recovered slightly overnight to trade at $0.9957 before the bell on Wednesday.
