The European markets are poised for a lower open on Thursday, after the U.S. Federal Reserve stopped short of announcing aggressive stimulus measures while extending the Operation Twist. Early Sentiment is likely to be weighed down further by weak manufacturing data from China and an impending Spanish debt auction.
The International Monetary Fund has expressed concern over the rising risk to global economic prospects. The lender has called on the Group of Twenty nations to enact more complete and collective policies to effectively manage the risks.
In an umbrella report for G20 Mutual Assessment Process, published Wednesday, IMF said global growth is weakening and remains susceptible to serious risks. The euro area crisis remains the most immediate threat to financial stability and global growth, the lender said.
Meanwhile, Spain is expected to publish a report on the state of its weak banks today. It is also speculated that the debt-ridden nation may make a request to the European Union for rescue.
The DAX futures are losing 35 points, the CAC 40 futures are dropping 16.50 points and the Euro Stoxx 50 futures are falling 12 points. The FTSE 100 futures are losing 25 points and the Swiss Market Index futures are falling 11 points.
The European markets closed mostly higher on Wednesday. The DAX added 0.5 percent and the CAC 40 gained 0.3 percent, while the FTSE 100 rose 0.6 percent. However, the Swiss Market fell around 0.3 percent.
The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks gathered 0.4 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, rose 0.3 percent.
On the corporate front, package delivery giant United Parcel Service, Inc. said it would commence the 9.50 euros per share public cash offer for the Netherlands-based TNT Express NV on June 22, following a deal reached early this year.
Medigene AG announced that the clinical formulation trial with RhuDex achieved positive results. Further clinical development of RhuDex for treating autoimmune diseases will continue with an optimized oral formulation, the firm said.
Ashtead Group Plc posted fourth-quarter profit attributable to equity holders of the company of 23.5 million pounds or 4.6 pence per share compared to a loss of 13.1 million pounds or 2.6 pence per share last year. Underlying earnings per share surged to 4 pence from 0.4 pence in the prior year.
In economic news from China, Markit Economics said that the flash HSBC purchasing managers' index for the manufacturing sector fell to a seven-month low of 48.1 in June from 48.4 in May.
Purchasing Managers' survey results from Eurozone and retail sales from the U.K. are the major statistical reports expected today, which may influence the markets.
In Asia/Pacific, major markets are mostly lower. Australia's All Ordinaries is losing 0.94 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng is falling 0.89 percent and China's Shanghai Composite Index is retreating 1.4 percent. However, Japan's Nikkei 225 is climbing 1.1 percent.
The U.S. futures indicate a lower open on Wall Street. In the previous session, the major averages bounced back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually ending the session mixed. While the Nasdaq crept up less than a tenth of a percent, the Dow edged down 0.1 percent and the S&P 500 slipped 0.2 percent.
Among commodities, crude for August delivery is losing $1.10 to $80.35 per barrel and August gold is falling $12.7 to $1603.1 a troy ounce.
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