BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European stocks are seen opening lower on Thursday after China took the hard line in trade talks, saying the communist country will take 'necessary countermeasures' if the U.S. follows through on a planned increase in tariffs on Chinese goods on Friday.
Meanwhile, as U.S. and Chinese negotiators resume trade talks in Washington, U.S. President Donald Trump said at a rally in Florida that China 'broke the deal' in the trade talks and so 'they'll be paying'.
Asian markets are trading lower after the U.S and China sent conflicting signals over trade. Benchmark indexes in China, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea fell 1-2 percent.
Gold held steady on safe-haven buying and the Japanese yen hit a six-week high against the dollar while oil edged lower after posting sharp gains overnight on data showing a surprise fall in U.S. crude inventories.
Overnight, U.S. stocks ended mostly lower amid continued uncertainty over U.S.-China trade. The Dow inched up marginally, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite eased 0.3 percent and the S&P 500 slipped 0.2 percent.
Trading in the U.S. later in the day may be impacted by reports on weekly jobless claims, the U.S. trade deficit, and producer prices as well as upbeat earnings news from entertainment giant Disney.
European markets recovered from an early slide to finish higher on Wednesday as Chinese Vice Premier Liu He Liu's scheduled trip to the United States this week offered a glimmer of hope for investors.
The pan European Stoxx 600 rose 0.2 percent. The German DAX advanced 0.7 percent, France's CAC 40 index gained 0.4 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 inched up 0.2 percent.
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