European stocks look set to open lower on Thursday as traders remain skeptical about U.S. President Donald Trump's approach to foreign policy and trade.
Trade worries continue to linger after top U.S. economic advisor Larry Kudlow said the Trump administration has no intention of backing down from the current China situation.
The euro inched higher against the dollar on the eve of EU migration summit taking place in Brussels today.
Angela Merkel is due to address the German parliament, the Bundestag, after talks between Merkel's CDU and her CSU allies to resolve their differences over migration policy ended in failure.
Asian stock markets are trading mixed in view of conflicting messages from U.S. President Trump and his aides over whether he would adopt a confrontational approach to limit Chinese investment in America.
U.S. oil prices slipped slightly after climbing more than 3 percent on Wednesday to reach three-and-a-half year highs, helped by supply disruptions in Libya and Canada as well as government data showing a bigger-than-expected drop in U.S. crude stockpiles.
Economic confidence figures from euro area and consumer price data from Germany are due later in the day, headlining a busy day for the European economic news.
Across the Atlantic, trading may be impacted by reaction to weekly jobless claims data and the final reading on first quarter GDP.
Overnight, U.S stocks closed firmly in the red on increasing trade worries. The Dow dropped 0.7 percent and the S&P 500 shed 0.9 percent while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite lost as much as 1.5 percent.
European stocks rallied on Wednesday amid reports the Trump administration has backed away from invoking executive authority to impose a tough crackdown on Chinese investments in the U.S.
The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index gained 0.7 percent. The German DAX and France's CAC 40 index both rose by 0.9 percent while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 advanced 1.1 percent.
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December 19, 2025 15:10 ET U.S. inflation data and interest rate decisions by major central banks were the highlights of this busy week for economics news flow. Employment data and survey results on the housing markets also gained attention in the U.S. In Europe, the European Central Bank and Bank of England announced their policy decisions and macroeconomic projections.