European Shares Stable as Investors Await Nvidia Earnings and Inflation Report

European shares were stable on Wednesday as investors awaited Nvidia's earnings report for clues on the AI-driven spending boom. The pan-European STOXX 600 rose by a mere 0.06% to 656.87, with luxury stocks leading sectoral gains of 1.2%. Meanwhile, tech shares fell 1.1% ahead of the results.

Nvidia is expected to forecast an 82.8% rise in third-quarter sales to $104.20 billion and a gross margin of around 75%. Hopes that the Strait of Hormuz may reopen soon pushed oil prices lower, with Brent crude futures dropping more than 2% to around $86 a barrel.

Investors are also bracing for a key U.S. inflation report due later in the day and Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's speech at the Jackson Hole symposium on Friday, which may provide fresh clues on the U.S. interest rate path. ECB policymakers are prepared to raise rates at the September meeting to counter the economic effects of the Iran war.