European equity markets were set to open higher on Wednesday, with major indexes on track to hit new record highs. Sentiment was buoyed by reports of an imminent agreement between the US and Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which drove oil prices sharply lower and eased concerns about inflation and the interest rate outlook. Additional support came from renewed gains in semiconductor and other artificial intelligence-related stocks, which helped lift global risk appetite.
In Europe, investors will focus on a fresh batch of macroeconomic data, including French industrial production, UK new car registrations, and Eurozone producer price index figures, as well as composite and services PMI readings from across the region. On the corporate side, attention will center on another wave of earnings reports, with results due from Siemens Energy, Infineon, Glencore, Deutsche Post, and BPER Banca. In premarket trade, futures on both the Euro Stoxx 50 and Stoxx 600 were up around 0.4%.
