By Peter Nurse
Investing.com -- European stock markets are expected to open in a subdued fashion Wednesday, ahead of the release of an influential gauge of German business sentiment and a key meeting of Federal Reserve policy makers.
At 2:05 AM ET (0605 GMT), the DAX futures contract in Germany traded less than 0.1% lower, CAC 40 futures in France dropped less than 0.1% and the FTSE 100 futures contract in the U.K. rose less than 0.1%.
European markets received a positive handover from Wall Street overnight, with the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 closing at record highs, but trading in Asia was more low-key.
The main focus this week is the Federal Reserve’s annual economic symposium, held this year online instead of at Jackson Hole, due to the spread of Covid-19. Fed Chair Jerome Powell's remarks on Friday will be carefully studied for any clues regarding the timing for the central bank's tapering of asset purchases.
Ahead of this, investors will look to the publication of the German Ifo Institute’s business climate and expectations indexes for August, at 4 AM ET (0800 GMT), for indications of the strength of Europe’s largest economy.
The European earnings season is almost over, and it has been a largely successful one, with European profits expected to have jumped 151% in the second quarter, according to the latest Refinitiv I/B/E/S data. This has helped support stocks, with most of the region’s major benchmark indices not far removed from record levels.
Radiation therapy equipment maker Elekta (ST:EKTAb) reported a fall in May-July earnings, saying the market continued to recover but costs related to the supply chain and logistics grew.
Elsewhere, oil prices retreated Wednesday, handing back some of the market’s recent gains with demand in the U.S., the world’s largest consumer, appearing to hold up despite rising Covid cases.
Data from the industry group the American Petroleum Institute, released late Tuesday, showed crude inventories fell 1.6 million barrels for the week ended Aug. 20, while gasoline stockpiles fell 1 million barrels.
Official data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration is due to be released later Wednesday.
By 2:05 AM ET, U.S. crude futures traded 0.2% lower at $67.42 a barrel, while the Brent contract fell 0.2% to $70.28. Both contracts have risen by around 8% over the previous two days, helped by the loss of more than 400,000 barrels per day of supply in Mexico after a fire on an oil platform.
Additionally, gold futures fell 0.6% to $1,797.00/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.1% lower at 1.1743.