European Shares To Rise After Apple's Record $110 Billion Buyback

(RTTNews) - European stocks may open on a buoyant note Friday as investors cheer Apple's strong earnings report.

The manufacturer of the iPhone and other devices announced the largest ever share buyback in U.S. history after revenue and earnings beat analysts' estimates, driven by record-high Services revenue.

Market attention will shift to the release of key U.S. nonfarm payrolls report and the ISM Services PMI numbers later in the day amid an uncertain path toward rate cuts in 2024.

Asian stocks traded higher in thin trade, with markets in Japan and mainland China closed for holidays.

The yen extended gains to cap a wild week that saw suspected intervention from Japanese authorities.

Gold held firm above $2,300 per ounce in Asian trading, while oil edged up but headed for a steep weekly loss on demand concerns.

U.S. stocks rose sharply overnight as rate hike fears faded and traders pulled forward expectations for the Federal Reserve's first full interest-rate cut by a month to November.

In economic news, weekly jobless claims remained historically low last week and new orders for U.S.-manufactured goods increased solidly in March, while workers' productivity slowed more sharply than anticipated at the start of 2024, pushing labor costs much higher, separate reports showed.

The Dow and the S&P 500 both rose around 0.9 percent, while the-tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 1.5 percent.

European stocks ended mixed on Thursday. The pan European STOXX 600 eased 0.2 percent as a survey showed the downturn in euro zone manufacturing activity deepened in April.

The German DAX slipped 0.2 percent and France's CAC 40 dropped 0.9 percent after the Fed signaled that interest rates will remain higher for a longer period. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 gained 0.6 percent on the back of strong earnings.