European Shares Likely To See Cautious Opening

European stocks are set to open on a cautious note Friday as bond yields in the U.S. rose on upbeat economic data and India reported another record high of 3.86 lakh new COVID cases in the last 24 hours.

Geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Washington and concerns about China’s crackdown on tech companies may also weigh on markets.

Asian markets fell after data showed China’s factory activity expanded at a slower-than-expected pace in April.

Japan’s industrial output posted a surprise increase in March and the jobless rate fell from the previous month while Tokyo consumer prices fell unexpectedly in April, separate reports showed.

Meanwhile, Chinese financial watchdogs on Thursday summoned 13 internet platforms engaged in finance business, including heavyweights Tencent and ByteDance, to order them to much tighter regulation of their data and lending practices.

The dollar rose in Asian trade but was set for a fourth consecutive week of losses against a basket of major peers. Gold weakened on strong U.S. data but remains on track to post its first monthly rise since December.

Oil prices slipped from a six-week high on concerns that wider lockdowns in India and Brazil will curb gasoline and jet fuel demand.

Quarterly national accounts from Germany and France are due later in the session, headlining a busy day for the European economic news.

Across the Atlantic, traders may keep an eye on reports on personal income and spending, consumer sentiment, and Chicago-area business activity.

Earnings news is likely to remain in focus, with Amazon and Twitter both beating Wall Street expectations for first-quarter revenue in results released after the close of Thursday’s trading.

Energy giants Chevron and Exxon Mobil are among the companies due to report their results before the start of trading later today.

U.S. stocks rose overnight as traders digested upbeat economic data and strong earnings from tech giants Apple and Facebook.

U.S. economic growth accelerated in the first quarter and more Americans signed contracts to buy homes in March, while initial jobless claims dropped to a new pandemic-era low in the week ended April 24th, separate reports showed.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.7 percent to hit a new record closing high, while the Dow gained 0.7 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.2 percent.

European stocks drifted lower on Thursday as investors reacted to a slew of upbeat earnings, downbeat data from Germany and rising bond yields despite the Fed’s pledge for an accommodative policy stance.

The pan European Stoxx 600 eased 0.3 percent. The German DAX shed 0.9 percent and France’s CAC 40 index slid 0.1 percent while the U.K.’s FTSE 100 ended largely unchanged.