European Shares To Open On Cautious Note Before US Jobs Report

(RTTNews) - European stocks may open on a sluggish note Friday as traders take stock of political turmoil in South Korea and France and await the all-important U.S. nonfarm payrolls report due later in the day for additional clues on the Fed's rate trajectory.

Economists expect U.S. employment to jump by 200,000 jobs in November after an increase of 12,000 jobs in October. The unemployment rate is expected to tick up to 4.2 percent from 4.1 percent.

Remarks by several Fed officials and a report on U.S. consumer sentiment, which includes readings on consumers' inflation expectations, may also provide further insights into the rate outlook, heading into the Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting later this month.

Market participants current expect the Fed to lower rates by another 25 basis points at the December meeting, but there remains considerable uncertainty about the likelihood of continued rate cuts at future meetings.

In France, President Emmanuel Macron said he will name a new Prime Minister "in the coming days" to prevent the country from sliding deeper into political turmoil.

Elsewhere in South Korea, President Yoon Suk Yeol faces impeachment vote as early as Saturday tor trying to impose martial law.

Asian markets traded mostly lower, with Chinese and Hong Kong stocks bucking the weak trend ahead of a key policy meeting next week that could unveil further stimulus measures to support growth.

Investors are also looking at the possibility of further reductions in the reserve requirement ratio by the Chinese central bank this month.

The dollar retreated on higher private unemployment claims, China's yuan headed for a 10th weekly drop and the South Korean won was still under pressure.

Gold ticked higher on dollar weakness while oil struggled for direction after the OPEC+ group postponed planned supply increases and extended deep output cuts to the end of 2026.

Overnight, U.S. stocks fluctuated before ending lower. The S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite both slid around 0.2 percent after hitting new record highs earlier in the day.

The Dow dipped 0.6 percent as United Health Group shares tumbled following the fatal shooting of CEO Brian Thompson outside a Manhattan hotel.

European stocks gained for a sixth straight session on Thursday in the longest winning streak since May amid optimism a new French budget could be passed within a matter of weeks.

The pan European STOXX 600 advanced 0.4 percent. The German DAX rose 0.6 percent, France's CAC 40 added 0.4 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 edged up by 0.2 percent.