European stocks are projected to open with a marginal increase on Thursday as investors remain in anticipation of key schedule inflation data from Europe and the U.S. Key economic data from Germany, Spain, and France, including inflation, retail sales, and unemployment figures will be highlighted later in the day. The latest eurozone inflation data for February is set to be released on Friday.
In the U.S., attention will be on the personal consumption expenditures price index data for January, another central indicator of inflation. Other significant reports include the weekly jobless claims and pending home sales. Predictions for January's annual consumer price growth rate foresee a drop to 2.4 percent, a decrease from December's rate of 2.6 percent. Similarly, the annual growth rate of core consumer prices is also projected to fall slightly from December's 2.9 percent to 2.8 percent in January.
A mixed performance was observed in Asian stocks. Anticipation of stimulus ahead of the National People's Congress led to the rise of Chinese and Hong Kong markets. The Chinese securities regulator's announcement of tighter scrutiny on derivative businesses in the stock market brought cheer to investors.
The value of the dollar remained strong, and gold remained stable following comments from three more Federal Reserve officials indicating that the pace of interest-rate cuts will be dependent on economic data. Presidents of Boston Fed Bank, Susan Collins, and Atlanta Fed, Raphael Bostic, stressed the need for patience in policy modifications. On the other hand, John Williams, President of New York Federal Reserve, stated that the 2 percent inflation target still remains somewhat distant.
Crude prices showed hardly any change in Asian trading following data that showed a larger than expected increase in U.S. crude inventories. U.S. stocks ended with a decrease as revised data indicated less growth than previously estimated in the U.S. economy for the fourth quarter of 2023. This led to optimism that the Federal Bank may implement rate cuts sooner.
In the meantime, European stocks showed mixed results on Wednesday, with investors standing by for key economic data from the U.S., Eurozone, and China. The pan-European STOXX 600 dropped 0.4 percent due to a dip in Eurozone's economic sentiment to a three-month low. Notwithstanding, the German DAX rose by 0.3 percent, France's CAC 40 rose marginally, whilst the U.K.'s FTSE 100 slipped by 0.8 percent.
