European Markets Seen Opening On A Weak Note

(RTTNews) - Stock markets in Europe are seen opening on weak note on Friday amidst anxiety about central bank monetary policies. The Dollar's rebound triggered by the monetary policy divergence also weighed on sentiment.

Wall Street extended gains on Thursday amidst the Fed's firm rate cut hints and positive earnings reports. Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.20 percent to close at 16,401.84 whereas the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.68 percent to finish trading at 39,781.37.

European stocks closed at multi-year highs on Thursday amidst a surprise rate cut by Swiss National Bank and dovish hints in Bank of England's monetary policy pause. U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 1.88 percent. The pan-European Stoxx-50 rallied 1.02 percent whereas Germany's DAX gained 0.88 percent. Switzerland's SMI gained 0.73 percent. France's CAC 40 edged up 0.22 percent.

Current indications from the European stock futures indicate a mostly negative sentiment. The pan-European Stoxx 50 Futures (Jun) has slipped 0.08 percent. The CAC 40 Futures (Apr) and the DAX Futures (Jun) have edged down 0.05 percent. The FTSE 100 Futures (Jun) has edged down 0.03 percent. The SMI Futures (Jun) had closed 0.57 percent higher on Friday.

American stock futures are trading in mildly positive territory. The US 30 (DJIA) is trading 0.07 percent higher, whereas the US500 (S&P 500) is trading 0.06 percent above the flatline.

Asian stock markets are trading on a mixed note amidst regulatory concerns and profit booking. Hong Kong's Hang Seng has tumbled 2.6 percent whereas China's Shanghai Composite is trading more than 1 percent lower. South Korea's KOSPI has dropped 0.22 a percent. Australia's S&P ASX 200 has edged down 0.15 percent. India's Nifty 50 has edged up 0.11 percent. Japan's Nikkei 225 has added 0.32 percent whereas DJ New Zealand has gained 0.49 percent.

The Dollar Index (DXY), a measure of the U.S. dollar's strength relative to six currencies, has jumped 0.79 percent to 104.23 amidst bets that the Fed would be behind other central banks in cutting rates. The EUR/USD pair has dropped 0.23 percent to 1.0835, whereas the GBP/USD pair has decreased 0.10 percent to trade at 1.2643.

In response to the Dollar's strength, Gold Futures for April settlement is trading at $2,174.25, which is 0.48 percent lower than the previous close of $2,184.70. Crude oil prices are trading lower. Brent Crude Futures for May settlement slipped 0.69 percent to $85.19 whereas WTI Crude Futures for May settlement decreased 0.73 percent to $80.48.

Key data releases for the region scheduled for the day are February's Retail Sales update from U.K. and the Ifo Business Climate reading for March from Germany. Fourth quarter current account data from Switzerland and Confederation of British Industry's Industrial Trend Orders for March are also scheduled for release later in the day. Speeches from key ECB officials are also keenly waited for monetary policy cues.

Major earnings updates due from the region include Heidelberg Cement, X5 Retail Group, and Secunet.