European shares fall on real estate drag, UK stocks slide after CPI data

(Reuters) - European shares opened lower on Wednesday after the real estate sector led declines against rising euro zone bond yields, while data affirming stubborn inflation in Britain weighed down London stocks.

The continent-wide STOXX 600 index dipped 0.1% by 0716 GMT. The exporter-heavy FTSE 100 index fell 0.4%, tracking a jump in the pound following the UK inflation data.

British consumer price index defied expectations of slowing and held at 8.7% in May. The data came a day before the Bank of England is forecast to raise interest rates for the 13th time in a row.

The reading also served as a stark reminder that the fight against inflation by major central banks is not over yet, sending Germany's two-year government bond yield, the most sensitive to rate expectations, to its highest since March 10.

Real estate stocks slid 1.3%.

Investors now await U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's two-day testimony before lawmakers.