European Shares Set To Open Lower As Tariff Worries Persist

(RTTNews) - European stocks may open on a sluggish note Thursday as markets weigh macroeconomic concerns against optimism that U.S. negotiators could secure a ceasefire in the Ukraine war.

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened on Wednesday to escalate a global trade war with further tariffs on European Union goods after the EU hit back with import duties on €26 billion worth of American goods "matching the economic scope of the U.S. tariffs."

Canada also responded with 25 percent new tariffs on U.S.-made goods worth C$30 billion (€19 billion) effective at midnight New York time on Thursday, matching the U.S. tariffs "dollar for dollar."

Trump's hyper-focus on tariffs has rattled investors, consumers and business confidence and sparked U.S. recession fears.

Equity strategists have recently tempered their expectations about the U.S. market, with Goldman Sachs Group, Citigroup and HSBC all downgrading their outlook on U.S. equities.

Meanwhile, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said his party members would not support the House-approved bill maintaining current federal funding levels for six months, heightening the possibility of a U.S. government shutdown by week's end.

He advocated for a one-month extension to enable Congress to evaluate individual spending bills and reach a mutually acceptable agreement.

Asian stocks were broadly lower, with Chinese and Hong Kong markets leading regional losses on tariff-related worries.

The U.S. dollar remained depressed near its lowest level since October 16 touched on Tuesday.

Gold attracted buyers for a third straight session and held near a two-week high as tamer-than-expected U.S. CPI data led to some optimism about the Federal Reserve resuming interest rate cuts in the near future.

Traders look forward to the release of U.S. reports on producer price inflation and weekly jobless claims later in the day for additional impetus.

Closer home, industrial production data from the euro area and unemployment figures from Italy may garner some attention.

Oil steadied after the biggest gain in two weeks on signs of tighter U.S. supplies and OPEC's decision to maintain its outlook for global oil demand growth in 2025.

U.S. stocks ended mostly higher overnight as consumer inflation came in lower than forecast by economists.

Data showed that CPI rose 2.8 percent annually in the month, down from 3.0 per cent in January and below the 2.9 percent forecast from economists.

The core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose 3.1 percent on an annual basis, following the 3.3 percent increase in January.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the report showed "the economy is moving in the right direction under President Trump."

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rallied 1.2 percent to rebound from six-month lows hit in the previous session.

The S&P 500 rose half a percent to snap a two-day losing streak while the narrowed Dow dipped 0.2 percent.

European stocks rebounded on Wednesday after four days of declines as Ukraine agreed to the U.S.-proposed 30-day ceasefire plan and the EU and Canada swiftly retaliated against Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs.

The pan European STOXX 600 climbed 0.8 percent. The German DAX rallied 1.6 percent, France's CAC 40 advanced 0.6 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 gained half a percent.