European Shares Seen Opening Higher In Cautious Trade

(RTTNews) - European stocks may open broadly higher on Friday after Wall Street shook off a midday slump to close higher overnight, led by gains in tech and growth stocks.

The upside, if any, may remain capped as investors await a report on U.S. personal income and spending later in the day, which includes a reading on inflation said to be preferred by the Federal Reserve.

Asian markets traded mixed, with Japan's Nikkei rising over 1 percent to rebound from one-month low, while Chinese and Hong Kong stocks led regional losses after Alibaba Group Holding reported lackluster growth in the October-December quarter.

The yen fluctuated as the nominee to become Bank of Japan governor spoke in parliament. The dollar held firm while oil and gold prices were seeing modest gains.

U.S. stocks rebounded from early losses to finish higher overnight, as Nvidia's upbeat outlook helped offset concerns about the trajectory of interest rates.

In economic releases, new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, pointing to a persistently tight labor market, while the U.S. economy grew by slightly less than previously estimated in the fourth quarter of 2022, separate reports showed.

The Dow inched up 0.3 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 0.7 percent and the S&P 500 gained half a percent.

European stocks ended Thursday's session mostly higher as the FOMC minutes sprung no surprises. The pan-European STOXX 600 ended flat with a positive bias. The German DAX rose half a percent and France's CAC 40 index edged up 0.3 percent while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 slipped 0.3 percent on ex-dividend trades.