European stocks are seen opening lower on Friday, with rising bond yields and weak U.S. data released overnight likely to keep underlying sentiment cautious.
Asian markets fell from record highs as higher yields and underwhelming U.S. data dented investor confidence in a faster economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Benchmark U.S. Treasury yields hovered close to a near one-year high hit earlier in the week led by the so-called “reflation trade” while oil prices fell over 1 percent to extend overnight losses. The dollar looked set to end the week with gains, putting a dent in gold’s appeal.
The British pound hovered near its highest in over three years as Britain’s aggressive vaccination program fueled hopes for rapid economic recovery.
Overnight, U.S. stocks ended lower as Walmart warned of slowing sales growth and data showed an unexpected rise in weekly jobless claims and a fall in housing starts for the first time in five months.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 dropped around 0.4 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite shed 0.7 percent.
European markets fell for a third day running on Thursday as a strong euro and rising commodity prices sparked inflation fears. The ECB meeting minutes had little impact on markets as expected.
The pan European Stoxx 600 gave up 0.8 percent. The German DAX edged down 0.2 percent, France’s CAC 40 index shed 0.7 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 fell 1.4 percent.
Market Analysis
European Shares Set To Follow Asian Peers Lower
2021-02-19 05:36:20
