LONDON — European stock markets are expected to open on a mixed note on Tuesday as market participants await the release of the latest inflation data from the euro zone.
According to IG data, the UK’s FTSE index is expected to open down 19 points at 81,587, Germany’s DAX is down 31 points to 18,288, France’s CAC 40 is down nine points to 7,566 and Italy’s FTSE MIB is up eight points to 33,891.
Euro zone consumer price data for June will be closely watched to see how it influences the European Central Bank’s next interest rate decision, with economists polled by Reuters expecting the headline rate to fall to 2.5 percent from 2.6 percent in May.
In other data, the British Retail Consortium said year-on-year inflation at shop prices in the UK fell to 0.2% in June from 0.6% in May, the lowest level since October 2021. The Bank of England is struggling on its own to decide when to start easing monetary policy after headline inflation in the UK hit its 2% target.
Germany’s Ifo economics institute said the auto industry’s performance failed to gain momentum along with the wider economy and “worsened slightly” in June.
Meanwhile, British grocery group Sainsbury’s reported a 3% increase in sales in its first quarter trading report.
Asia-Pacific markets were mostly lower overnight, in contrast to Wall Street, where technology stocks helped push the Nasdaq Composite to a record high.
U.S. stock futures were little changed after major stock averages closed higher in the early hours of 2024 as tech stocks performed well.
