European Stock Futures Mixed; Corporate Earnings, Political Uncertainty in Focus

By Peter Nurse 

Investing.com - European stock markets are expected to open mixed Thursday, as investors digested quarterly corporate earnings amid continued political and economic uncertainty.

At 02:10 ET (06:10 GMT), the DAX futures contract in Germany traded 0.4% lower, the FTSE 100 futures contract in the U.K. fell 0.1%, while CAC 40 futures in France climbed 0.1%.

The political confusion in the U.K. continues after the abrupt resignation of Home Secretary Suella Braverman late Wednesday, adding to the continued erosion of Prime Minister Liz Truss’s authority.

The committee in charge of running Britain's Conservative Party leadership contests is set to meet later Thursday to discuss Truss’s leadership, according to The Daily Telegraph, raising the possibility that she could face a challenge in the near future.

German producer prices rose by a massive 45.8% on an annual basis in September, up 2.3% on the month, indicating that inflation remains a serious issue in the Eurozone’s largest economy.

This will also increase the pressure on the European Central Bank to aggressively continue its monetary tightening policy, with a hike of 75 basis points widely expected at its next meeting at the end of the month.

In corporate news, Ericsson's (ST:ERICb) third-quarter core earnings missed expectations for the second quarter in a row, as margins at the Swedish telecommunications company took a hit from higher component and logistics costs.

Finnish banking group Nordea (HE:NDAFI) posted third-quarter operating earnings above expectations, helped by rising interest income, adding its outlook for the full year had improved.

Nokia (NYSE:NOK) reported quarterly operating profit below expectations even as the Finnish telecom equipment maker continues to benefit from strong demand from phone companies as they roll out 5G.

French spirits maker Pernod Ricard (EPA:PERP) reported 11% sales growth in its first quarter, helped by price increases in the United States, its top market.

Oil prices rose Thursday, boosted by an unexpected drop in U.S. crude stocks, suggesting consumption in the world’s largest economy remained steady despite pressure from rising inflation and interest rates.

U.S. crude oil inventories fell by 1.7 million barrels last week, according to data from the Energy Information Administration released Wednesday.

This news overshadowed plans by the Biden administration to release another 15 million barrels of oil from the country’s strategic reserves in an attempt to dampen high prices.

By 02:10 ET, U.S. crude futures traded 1.4% higher at $85.62 a barrel, while the Brent contract rose 0.8% to $93.14. 

Additionally, gold futures rose 0.1% to $1,635.70/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.2% higher at 0.9791.