European equity markets were set to open lower on Tuesday, as renewed selling in technology stocks—driven by persistent concerns over artificial intelligence—dampened global risk appetite. Investor sentiment was further constrained by caution ahead of the US midterm elections, which will decide control of both houses of Congress; the prospect of a Democratic takeover was seen as an additional source of uncertainty for markets.
In Europe, focus is shifting to a series of monetary policy decisions due this week from the UK, Sweden, Norway and Poland. The Bank of England is widely expected to raise its policy rate to 4% on Thursday. Market participants are also awaiting a slate of key economic data, including inflation figures, manufacturing PMIs and retail sales from across the region.
On the corporate side, investors are looking ahead to earnings reports from several major companies, including Ferrari, BMW, Philips, Commerzbank and Daimler Truck, among others. In premarket trading, Euro Stoxx 50 futures were down 1%, while Stoxx 600 futures fell 0.6%.
