European Shares Seen Lower At Open

(RTTNews) - European stocks may drift lower at open on Friday as investors navigate geopolitical tensions and react to the Bank of Japan's decision to raise interest rates to the highest in 30 years.

The Trump administration announced a significant arms sales package to Taiwan worth over U.S. $10 billion, drawing an angry response from China.

Also, in his year-end address last night, President Donald Trump asserted that tariffs would remain a central pillar of his economic policy, signaling a long-term commitment to the use of import duties to reshape global trade rather than a short-term negotiating tactic.

In economic releases, finalized consumer sentiment and inflation expectation figures from the U.S. may garner some attention later in the day.

British consumer confidence edged up in December to its joint-highest level this year ahead of the Christmas period, but morale remains subdued amid persistent cost-of-living pressures and broader economic uncertainty, a monthly survey showed.

Asian markets were broadly higher after softer-than-expected November inflation data sparked a rebound in technology shares on Wall Street overnight.

The Japanese yen extended losses against the dollar, helping ease concerns about the unwinding of yen carry trades.

Oil was steady but headed for a second weekly decline as concerns over a growing glut overshadowed potential supply disruptions stemming from Russia and Venezuela.

Gold dipped as weaker-than-expected U.S. inflation data diminished its appeal as an inflation hedge.

Overnight, U.S. stocks closed higher as a softer-than-expected consumer price index inflation reading for November added to bets that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates further in the new year.

Data showed the consumer price index rose 2.7 percent in November from a year earlier and 2.6 percent on a "core" basis — both figures coming in below economists' expectations.

Another report showed first-time claims for unemployment benefits declined roughly in line with economist estimates in the week ended December 13th.

Micron Technology's better than expected quarterly results and blowout guidance also sparked a rebound in technology shares.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.4 percent, while the S&P 500 gained 0.8 percent and the Dow edged up by 0.1 percent to snap their four-day losing streaks.

Oracle shares jumped 6 percent in extended trade on Thursday after TikTok signed a deal to divest its U.S. entity to a joint venture controlled by American investors.

Also, media reports suggest that AI startup OpenAI, to which the company is heavily exposed, is looking to raise as much as $100 billion.

In other corporate news, logistics and delivery giant FedEx Corporation reported strong second-quarter earnings growth but flagged a highly challenging macro environment.

Sportswear major Nike warned that sales will decline this quarter on the back of steadily declining sales in China.

Meanwhile, the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Inc. said they won't alter their trading schedules on Dec. 24 and Dec. 26, despite President Trump's executive order to close the federal government on both of those days.

European stocks closed on a firm note on Thursday despite the European Central Bank and Bank of England issuing hawkish signals on the outlook for their rate paths.

The pan European Stoxx 600 advanced 1 percent. The German DAX rallied 1 percent, France's CAC 40 surged 0.8 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 0.7 percent.