European Shares Seen Mixed At Open

(RTTNews) - European stocks are seen opening on a mixed note Thursday, with the FTSE 100 likely to tick higher as the British pound dropped below $1.30 for the first time since August amid bets that slower inflation could pave the way for the Bank of England to cut interest rates again next month.

The European Central Bank (ECB) announces its interest-rate decision later in the day, with a 25-bps cur largely factored in.

Across the Atlantic, trading later in the day may be influenced by reaction to the release of reports on weekly jobless claims, retail sales and industrial production.

Asian markets were mostly higher after China's housing ministry said it will expand a "white list" of housing projects eligible for financing and increase bank lending for such developments to 4 trillion yuan ($562 billion).

Gold hovered near record levels on a softer dollar. while oil edged up slightly after four days of declines on China demand concerns and worries over a global glut.

Meanwhile, Israeli strikes continue in Lebanon and Gaza and U.S. officials expect Israel to respond to Iran's October attack before November 5.

U.S. stocks closed higher overnight after upbeat earnings from Morgan Stanley and United Airlines.

The Dow climbed 0.8 percent to a new record closing high, while the S&P 500 added half a percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.3 percent.

European stocks fell broadly on Wednesday as tech and luxury stocks tumbled in the wake of disappointing results from industry heavyweights ASML and LVMH.

The pan European STOXX 600 eased 0.2 percent. The German DAX slipped 0.3 percent and France's CAC 40 dipped 0.4 percent while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 rallied 1 percent as weak inflation data fuelled rate-cut hopes.