01:31 PM EDT, 03/20/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The European stock markets closed mixed in Wednesday trading as The Stoxx Europe 600 gained 0.02%, the Swiss Market Index rose 0.35%, France's CAC was down 0.48%, the FTSE in London was off 0.012%, and Germany's DAX was up 0.14%.

The European Commission's flash estimate of the consumer confidence indicator for March increased by 0.6 percentage points in both the EU and the euro area. However, at -15.2 in the EU and -14.9 in the euro area, consumer confidence remained well below its long-term average.

Seasonally adjusted production in construction increased 0.5% in the euro area and decreased 1.0% in the EU In January compared with December, according to first estimates from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

In the UK, the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs was 3.8% in the 12 months to February down from 4.2% in January, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The average UK house price declined by 2,000 pounds ($2,544) to 282,000 pounds in January compared with a year earlier, according to HM Land Registry.

In Germany, producer prices of industrial products declined 4.1% in February as compared to year ago period, according to the Federal Statistical Office.

In Italy, the seasonally adjusted industrial production index decreased 1.2% in January compared with the previous month, according to the Italian National Institute of Statistics.

And in corporate news, shares of French luxury goods company Kering tumbled nearly 12% on the CAC in Paris in Wednesday trading after it warned that Q1 sales at its Gucci label would fall approximately 20% due to lower sales in the Asia-Pacific region.

The news dragged other luxury goods stocks lower as Louis Vuitton and Pernod Ricard dropped 1.6% and 1% respectively in Paris, while Burberry Group shares fell more than 3% in London.

Irish airline operator Ryanair's ( RYAOF ) Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said he will meet with senior Boeing ( BA ) executives Wednesday to discuss prolonged plane delivery delays, Reuters reported. Ryanair ( RYAOF ) told MT Newswires in a statement it "will host a routine meeting at our Dublin HQ today with Boeing ( BA ), however we don't have anything further to add."