European Markets Seen Opening Lower

(RTTNews) - European stock markets are likely to open negative on Thursday tracking losses in Asian peers and weak sentiment on Wall Street. Geopolitical concerns are expected to weigh heavily on market sentiment.

Wall Street had closed on a mixed note on Wednesday amidst anticipation ahead of NVIDIA's earnings report as well as geopolitical concerns. The Nasdaq Composite shed 0.11 percent to close trading at 18,966.14 whereas the Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 0.32 percent to finish trading at 43,408.47.

European markets closed on Wednesday on a predominantly bearish note amidst renewed tensions between Russia and Ukraine. The mixed earnings report and hotter-than-expected inflation readings in the U.K. also weighed on sentiment. France's CAC 40 slipped 0.43 percent followed by the pan-European Stoxx-50 that erased 0.42 percent. Germany's DAX declined 0.29 percent. U.K.'s FTSE 100 also slipped 0.17 percent. Switzerland's SMI edged down 0.02 percent.

Current indications from the European stock futures indicate a negative sentiment. The DAX Futures (Dec) has slipped 0.17 percent. The CAC 40 Futures (Dec) has declined 0.41 percent. The FTSE 100 Futures (Dec) has also edged down 0.06 percent. The pan-European Stoxx 50 Futures (Dec) has decreased 0.15 percent. The SMI Futures (Dec) however finished Wednesday's trading 0.44 percent higher.

American stock futures are trading negative as investors digested Nvidia's much-anticipated earnings report. The US 30 (DJIA) is trading 0.03 percent lower, whereas the US500 (S&P 500) is trading 0.23 percent below the flatline.

Asian stock markets are trading on a mostly negative note. Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark has lost 0.95 percent. India's Nifty 50 has declined 0.74 percent. China's Shanghai Composite has dropped 0.48 percent whereas Hong Kong's Hang Seng has erased 0.42 percent. Australia's S&P ASX 200 has edged down 0.04 percent. DJ New Zealand has gained 0.32 percent whereas South Korea's KOSPI has rallied 0.21 percent.

The Dollar Index, a measure of the U.S. dollar's strength relative to six currencies, is exhibiting weakness after a rebound on Wednesday. DXY has edged down to 106.58 from 106.68 on Wednesday and 106.21 on Tuesday. The EUR/USD pair has edged up 0.08 percent to 1.0551 whereas the GBP/USD pair has edged up 0.04 percent to trade at 1.2655.

Supported by safe haven demand, gold extended gains. Gold Futures for December settlement is trading at $2,662.65, which is 0.41 percent higher than the previous close of $2,651.70.

Crude oil prices are trading above the flatline amidst lingering geopolitical concerns. Brent Crude Futures for January settlement added 0.25 percent to trade at $72.99 whereas WTI Crude Futures for January settlement gained 0.29 percent to trade at $68.95.

Data expected from the region on Thursday include Business Confidence for November from France, CBI Industrial Trends Orders for November from France, Consumer Confidence Flash for November from Euro Area and GfK Consumer Confidence for November from U.K.

Major earnings updates due from the region include Halma, International Distribution Services, Jet2, Mitie Group, Ithaca Energy and CMC Markets.