European Shares Seen Lower In Cautious Trade

European stocks are seen opening lower on Friday as investors fret about supply bottlenecks and rising raw material prices.

Earnings news will also be in focus with Amazon and Apple reporting disappointing quarterly earnings results in a sign that the global supply-chain crisis is hobbling even the mightiest companies.

Worries persist over a virus resurgence, with authorities in Moscow ordering most people to stay off work for at least 11 days to stem coronavirus infections after new daily cases and deaths from Covid-10 surged to all-time highs.

Asian markets traded mixed as Chinese property developer Evergrande reportedly made an overdue interest payment for an offshore bond before a Friday deadline, helping ease contagion fears.

Gold was poised for a weekly gain as the dollar held near a one-month low and U.S. 10-year Treasury yields dipped.

Oil prices edged higher but headed for their first weekly losses in at least eight weeks as supply concerns ease.

Quarterly national accounts from Eurozone and major euro area economies are due later in the session, headlining a busy day for the European economic news.

Across the Atlantic, a report on personal income and spending may attract attention ahead of next week’s Federal Reserve meeting.

On the earnings front, energy giants Chevron and Exxon Mobil are among the companies due to report their results before the opening bell.

U.S. stocks rose overnight as a string of solid earnings reports and encouraging jobless claims figures outweighed data showing a dramatic slowdown in the pace of U.S. economic growth in the third quarter.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rallied 1.4 percent and the S&P 500 added 1 percent to reach new record closing highs while the Dow gained 0.7 percent.

European stocks struggled for direction before ending mixed on Thursday as the European Central Bank left its key interest rates and its forward guidance on asset purchases unchanged, saying that a recent spike in inflation would be temporary.

The pan European Stoxx 600 edged up 0.2 percent. The German DAX and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 both ended flat with a negative bias, while France’s CAC 40 index climbed 0.8 percent.

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