European Shares Seen Higher At Open

European stocks are expected to open mostly higher on Thursday, even though Nvidia’s weak sales forecast has raised concerns about the AI investment boom.

Investors will be watching trade news closely after the U.S. imposed steep 50% tariffs on India and reports suggested Mexico plans to raise tariffs on Chinese imports in its 2026 budget.

In Europe, French President Emmanuel Macron has told his ministers that the EU should consider retaliating against the U.S. after President Trump threatened more tariffs over tech regulations and taxes.

On the economic side, investors will look out for euro area economic confidence data and monetary aggregates later today. The European Central Bank will also release the minutes of its July 23–24 policy meeting, where it kept interest rates unchanged, noting that inflation pressures were easing.

In the U.S., reports on weekly jobless claims, pending home sales, and an updated GDP reading are due today, ahead of Friday’s key July PCE inflation data—the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge.

Asian markets were mixed, oil prices slipped after recent gains, and gold traded lower on a stronger dollar.

On Wall Street, U.S. stocks closed higher on Wednesday as investors shrugged off President Trump’s unprecedented move to fire Fed Board Governor Lisa Cook and awaited Nvidia’s results. The S&P 500 rose 0.2% to a record high, the Dow added 0.3%, and the Nasdaq gained 0.2%.

In Europe, markets ended mixed on Wednesday amid political tensions in France. The STOXX 600 rose 0.1%, the German DAX fell 0.4%, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.1%, and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.4%.