European stocks are likely to consolidate the previous session's sharp gains on Wednesday, as investors turn their attention to Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke's news conference later in the day for clues on the health of the U.S. economy.
While there is little doubt that the Fed will repeat its commitment to keeping interest rates low for an extended period, investors are likely to pay close attention to the tone of the accompanying policy statement.
Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher today, albeit with modest gains, after the Greek government won a vote of confidence crucial to avoiding a sovereign default. Japan's Nikkei index climbed almost 2 percent on short covering following recent sharp losses.
Commodities such as copper and crude are subdued and the Dow futures are declining 4 points. In the forex market, the dollar is edging higher against the euro and the yen.
The Dow rose 0.9 percent, the Nasdaq climbed 2.2 percent and the S&P 500 closed up 1.3 percent overnight, as hopes that Greece would avoid a sovereign default and a positive report on home sales boosted sentiment.
The George Papandreou-led government in Greece has survived a crucial confidence vote in Parliament as it battles to garner support for further cost-cutting measures and avoid a sovereign default. The government will now seek lawmakers' approval next Tuesday for the austerity measures, which are expected to save 28 billion euros with cuts, privatization plans and economic reforms.
Meanwhile, the Spanish economy is facing "considerable" risks despite strong and wide-ranging policy response over the last year, the International Monetary Fund said. Though the policy response to the serious economic and financial challenges has helped the country to gradually recover and get the necessary rebalancing underway, the repair of the economy is still "incomplete," IMF said in a report.
French business confidence indicator for June, Bank of England's June meeting minutes, Swiss ZEW survey report for June and the Eurozone industrial new orders for April are slated for release in the European session.
In corporate news, Royal Dutch Shell agreed to acquire 254 petrol retail sites in the U.K. from Rontec Investments LLP for a total cash of about $400 million or 240 million pounds.
British telecommunications firm Cable & Wireless Worldwide Plc confirmed that its board considered and rejected the approach received for its global business division.
Australian airline Qantas said it has reached a $100 million settlement with U.K. engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce over last year's mid-air disintegration of a superjumbo engine.
Swiss drug manufacturer Novartis AG announced that a U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel has voted against recommending approval of its gouty arthritis drug ACZ885, citing safety concerns.
French engineering firm Alstom said it signed an agreement with RusHydro to set up a joint venture for the production of hydropower and auxiliary equipment in Russia.
Britain's Barclays on its website announced proposals for incorporating Egg's 1.15 million credit card customers into the Barclaycard portfolio.
Moody's Investors Service cut retailer Carrefour's credit rating outlook to "negative" from "stable".
European stocks surged higher on Tuesday, paring some of the steep losses incurred in the past seven weeks, on optimism that a vote of confidence in the Greek government will pave the way for emergency aid to Athens.
The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks jumped almost 2 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, advanced 1.3 percent. The German DAX rose 1.9 percent, France's CAC 40 added a little over 2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 closed up 1.4 percent.
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May 08, 2026 15:50 ET Manufacturing and services sector survey results and labor market data from main economies were the highlight on the economics news front this week. Factory orders and jobs report dominated the news flow in the U.S. Similarly, industrial production data from German garnered attention in Europe. In Asia, purchasing managers’ survey results from China and the central bank decision from Australia were in focus.