European Shares Seen Tad Lower At Open

RTTNews | 364 days ago

(RTTNews) - European stocks are seen opening flat to slightly lower on Friday as a busy week for central bank meetings and key economic releases draws to an end.

U.S. stock futures ticked higher after parcel delivery giant FedEx Corp. reinstated its full-year profit outlook and the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the discussions that President Trump's team is weighing a plan to spur the construction of factories and other infrastructure in a bid to jump-start the American manufacturing sector.

Asian markets were mixed while the yen strengthened after the Bank of Japan kept interest rates steady and announced that it will begin offloading exchange-traded funds.

Investors now await a phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping later in the day that could help determine the fate of TikTok and the future of U.S.-China relations.

On the economic front, U.K. retail sales data and France's monthly business survey results may garner some attention later in the day.

The dollar was flat while Treasury yields continued to rise after Thursday's data showed U.S. jobless claims had dropped by the most in nearly four years, suggesting the U.S. economy remains resilient and is unlikely to spiral into a recession.

Gold ticked higher but oil prices traded lower as traders waited to see what additional sanctions are placed on Russian oil.

Overnight, U.S. stocks notched fresh record highs as Nvidia agreed to invest $5 billion in Intel Corp and data showed fewer Americans filed new applications for unemployment benefits last week.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 0.9 percent, the S&P 500 added half a percent and the Dow rose 0.3 percent, a day after the Fed delivered its first interest-rate cut since December 2024 and signaled two more rate cuts in 2025.

European stocks closed higher on Thursday following Federal Reserve and Bank of England rate decisions.

The pan European STOXX 600 advanced 0.8 percent. The German DAX surged 1.4 percent, France's CAC 40 climbed 0.9 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 edged up 0.2 percent.

Swiss Market Ends On Weak Note

The Switzerland stock market closed notably lower on Friday, in line with markets across Europe as worries about inflation and uncertainty about central banks' monetary policy moves rendered the mood cautious.

RTTNews | 34 minutes ago

European Stocks Fall As Central Bank Signals Weigh On Sentiment

European stocks declined Friday amid caution over monetary policy and inflation outlooks from major central banks. The ECB survey showed Euro Zone inflation expectations rose to 3% from 2.9%, while the Bank of Japan raised rates by 25 basis points.

RTTNews | 1h 6min ago

U.S. Leading Economic Index Unexpectedly Edges Lower In August

A report released the Conference Board on Friday unexpectedly showed a modest decrease by its reading on leading U.S. economic indicators in the month of August. The Conference Board said its leading economic index edged down by 0.1 percent in August after rising by 0.2 percent in July. Economists had expected the index to inch up by 0.1 percent.

RTTNews | 4h 41min ago

U.S. Industrial Production Unexpectedly Flat In August

With a jump in utilities output offset by a decrease in manufacturing output, the Federal Reserve released a report on Friday showing U.S. industrial production unexpectedly came in flat in the month of August. The Fed said industrial production was unchanged in August after rising by an unrevised 0.2 percent in July. Economists had expected industrial production to climb by 0.3 percent.

RTTNews | 4h 49min ago

UK Retail Sales Recover Unexpectedly

UK retail sales rebounded unexpectedly in August underpinned by online shopping and warm weather boosted sales of seasonal items, data from the Office for National Statistics revealed Friday. Retail sales grew 0.5 percent on a monthly basis, offsetting July's 0.5 percent fall. Sales were expected to drop 0.2 percent.

RTTNews | 5h 32min ago

Bay Street Likely To Open On Mixed Note

Canadian stocks are likely to open on mixed note on Friday, with investors tracking commodity prices and assessing recent monetary policy moves and weighing inflation outlook. Activity for most part of the session could be a bit lackluster amid a lack of fresh data or corporate news.

RTTNews | 6h 8min ago

FTSE 100 Drifts Lower Despite Strong Retail Sales Data

Despite data showing an unexpected jump in retail sales, U.K. stocks weakened on Friday with investors assessing recent policy announcements and inflation outlook from major central banks.

RTTNews | 7h 49min ago

French Stocks Shed Ground On Inflation Concerns

French stocks shed ground on Friday, retreating after two successive days of gains, as concerns about inflation and fears of policy tightening by some major central banks rendered the mood cautious. A survey by the European Central Bank showed Euro Zone consumers nudged up their inflation expectations last month.

RTTNews | 8h 14min ago

EURUSD	1.14829	GBPUSD	1.33918
USDJPY	156.715	USDCAD	1.39933