As investors prepare for a crucial week featuring a European Central Bank meeting to discuss policy normalization and the release of the latest U.S. inflation data, it is anticipated that European stock markets will open higher on Monday.
At 2 AM ET (0600 GMT), the DAX futures contract in Germany was up 0.3%, the CAC 40 futures contract in France was up 0.5%, and the FTSE 100 futures contract in the United Kingdom was up 0.7%.
European shares closed last week on a sour note, despite the fact that trading volumes were low due to the U.K.’s holiday, as statistics revealed that the U.S. economy added 390,000 jobs in May. This exceeded expectations and encouraged investors to reevaluate the likelihood of Federal Reserve interest rate hikes in the coming months.
In light of this, investors are eagerly anticipating the release of the U.S. CPI report for May on Friday, as it will serve as a major input before the Fed decides how much to raise interest rates next week.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile energy and fuel prices, is anticipated to reach 5.9 percent year-over-year, which would represent the third straight month of reductions and suggest that core inflation may have reached its high.
Ahead of this, the European Central Bank is scheduled to hold a meeting on Thursday, where it is anticipated that rate hikes would be announced for the third quarter.
ECB President Christine Lagarde outlined her plan to raise rates out of negative territory a couple of weeks ago, indicating that the central bank’s minus 0.5 percent deposit rate should begin rising in July and could be at zero or “slightly above” by the end of September, before continuing to rise “towards the neutral rate.”
Enhancing the tenor The Caixin index rose to 41.4 in May from 36.2 in April, indicating an increase in Chinese service sector activity. However, the figure remained below the 50-point threshold that distinguishes expansion from contraction, indicating a gradual recovery in the second largest economy in the world.
easyJet (LON:EZJ) is set to be in the focus in corporate news after the low-cost carrier canceled 80 flights on Sunday owing to the harsh operating climate.
Earlier in the month of May, the airline canceled more than 200 flights owing to airport delays and other limitations affecting travel during school holidays.
Oil surged on Monday as Saudi Arabia significantly increased rates for its crude shipments in July to Asian clients, a sign that the world’s largest oil exporter anticipates robust summer demand despite extremely tight supplies.
The price surge occurred despite the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) deciding last week to expand production in July and August by 648,000 barrels per day, or 50 percent more than originally planned.
U.S. crude futures traded 0.4% higher at $119.38 a barrel at 2:05 AM ET, after earlier reaching a three-month high, while the Brent price rose 0.5% to $120.28.
In addition, gold futures increased 0.4% to $1,857.10 per ounce, while EUR/USD traded 0.1% higher at 1.0724.
