BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European stocks may open largely unchanged on Thursday after the U.S. House of Representatives impeached President Donald Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstructing Congress.
That said, it's the upper chamber, the Senate, that holds the impeachment trial early next year. A two-thirds vote would be required to remove Trump from office. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) has said he sees no scenarios in which Trump would be convicted.
Asian markets traded mixed while safe-haven assets such as gold and the Japanese yen rose amid growing geopolitical risks.
North Korea has threatened 'Christmas gift' if the U.S. does not give concessions on nuclear negotiations by 2020.
Elsewhere, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is in Moscow with the aim of getting Russia to ditch its ally Syria following last week's chemical attack.
Policy decision is due from the Bank of England later today while revised U.S. GDP data will be out Friday.
Earlier in the day, the Bank of Japan kept its monetary policy settings steady but offered a gloomier view on factory output than at its previous rate review in October.
The British pound traded flat after falling over the past two sessions on concerns of a possible no-deal Brexit. No changes are expected from the Bank of England but the central bank could hint of 2020 easing.
U.S. stocks ended mixed overnight as FedEx plunged on disappointing results and traders kept an eye on developments on Capitol Hill, where House Democrats prepared to vote to impeach President Trump.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite inched up 0.1 percent to a new record closing high, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 finished marginally lower.
European markets ended Wednesday's session on a mixed note as investors fretted about a 'cliff-edge' Brexit.
The pan European Stoxx 600 eased 0.1 percent. The German DAX dropped half a percent and France's CAC 40 index slipped 0.2 percent while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 inched up 0.2 percent.
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