Europe: Stocks Pull Back from Records.

European stocks closed firmly lower on Thursday to retreat from the record highs in the previous session, pressured by pessimistic earnings results and expectations that the Federal Reserve will maintain rates elevated for a longer period. The Eurozone's STOXX 50 lost 0.8% to 6,054 and the pan-European STOXX 600 dropped 0.6% to 624. Minutes from the Fed's last meeting indicated that a majority of policymakers see the risk of inflation taking longer than expected to return to target, while few members did not exclude a rate hike should inflation not soften. The outlook pressured banking stocks that have gained sharply this month, with UniCredit, Santander, and BBVA dropping more than 2%. Meanwhile, Airbus slid 7% after missing delivery forecasts for this year. In turn, Enel fell close to 4% after the Italian government increased corporate taxes on power utility companies.