European Shares Set For Soft Opening On China COVID Concerns

(RTTNews) - European stocks look set to open on a tepid note Thursday as rising COVID cases in China following the easing of strict restrictions fueled concerns that countries might reinforce various curbs on travelers from the country.

Rising bond yields over fears that inflation could pick up on China's reopening may also keep investors on the sidelines.

Asian markets traded broadly lower, with benchmark indexes in Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Australia falling over 1 percent.

The dollar held steady, helping spur a recovery in gold prices after a 1 percent fall in the previous session.

Oil extended overnight losses on concerns over rising COVID cases in China and expectations of another interest rate hike in the United States.

The European economic calendar remains light today, heading into the new year.

Across the Atlantic, a report on weekly jobless claims may attract some attention ahead of next week's closely watched monthly jobs report, which could shed additional light on the outlook for interest rates and the economy.

The release of the minutes of the Fed's December meeting due next Wednesday may also provide some insight into the outlook for rates.

U.S. stocks fell sharply overnight, with recession fears and growing concerns around COVID re-emergence weighing on markets heading into 2023.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lost 1.4 percent to hit a 2022 closing low while the S&P 500 shed 1.2 percent and the Dow declined 1.1 percent.

European stocks closed broadly lower on Wednesday as several countries announced plans to impose entry curbs for those coming from China.

The pan European STOXX 600 slipped 0.1 percent. The German DAX dropped half a percent and France's CAC 40 index gave up 0.6 percent while the U.K.'s FTSE rose 0.3 percent as trading resumed after a long holiday weekend.