After a fairly good start Friday morning, the major European markets turned weak and ended the day's session with notable losses as oil's climb and concerns that major central banks will soon hike interest rates rendered the mood bearish.
Major central banks, including the Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of England, left their interest rates unchanged but hinted at one or more rate hikes this year to combat inflation.
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May 22, 2026 14:46 ET Minutes of the latest Fed policy session was the highlight of the week along with survey data on the U.S. housing market. In Europe, survey data signaled the trends in the euro area private sector. Further, consumer price inflation data from the U.K. was in focus. In Asia, various economic indicators from China drew attention to the health of the economy.