BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European stocks are likely to open higher on Friday as a helping hand from the European Central Bank fueled hopes for a swift economic rebound.
Asian markets are moving higher and poised for their biggest weekly rise since 2011 while the euro hovered near a 1-1/2 month high.
Gold held steady on dollar weakness while oil nudged higher ahead of an OPEC+ meeting on Saturday to discuss extending output cuts.
The focus now turns to the U.S. nonfarm payrolls data later today, which is expected to show further deterioration in the U.S. jobs market.
Economists currently expect employment to tumble by about 8.0 million jobs in May after a decrease of 20.5 million jobs in April. The unemployment rate is expected to jump to 19.8 percent from 14.7 percent.
The U.S. Federal Reserve holds its regular two-day policy meeting next week, although officials are unlikely to signal any new moves.
U.S.-China tensions persist after U.S. President Donald Trump issued a memo calling for recommendations to protect U.S. investors from china's failure to allow audits of U.S.-listed Chinese companies.
Investors await plans for the next round of U.S. economic stimulus, but Trump administration officials have reportedly postponed discussions scheduled for this week.
In economic releases, Destatis is scheduled to issue Germany's factory orders data later in the day. Economists expect orders to fall 19.7 percent on a monthly basis in April, following a 15.6 percent drop in March.
U.K. Halifax house price data is due. Economists expect house prices to fall 0.7 percent month-on-month in May after easing 0.6 percent in April.
U.S. stocks ended mostly lower overnight as yet another round of dismal weekly jobless-claims data offset new stimulus efforts in Europe to deal with the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up 0.1 percent to a three-month closing high, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite shed 0.7 percent and the S&P 500 declined 0.3 percent.
European markets drifted lower on Thursday after the ECB announced a larger-than-expected expansion of its coronavirus stimulus program, but warned the euro zone is facing an 'unprecedented contraction'.
The pan European Stoxx 600 declined 0.7 percent. The German DAX dropped half a percent, France's CAC 40 index slid 0.2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE gave up 0.6 percent.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2020 AFX News
