Proactive Investors - FTSE seen lower ahead of ECB rate call and US GDP; Tesla disappoints.
The FTSE 100 is expected to open lower as investors await the interest rate decision from the European Central Bank and growth figures from the US.
Spread betting companies are calling London's blue-chip index down by around 15 points after closing up 41.94 points at 7,527.67 on Wednesday.
Disappointing results from Tesla add to the more subdued mood with the EV maker down 6.0% in after-hours trading.
Tesla reported fourth quarter earnings below expectations and warned about "notably lower" sales growth in 2024 as it prepares to launch its next-generation vehicle.
The ECB is expected to leave interest rates unchanged with the focus squarely on comments regarding the timing of rate cuts.
The market is pricing in a first 25 basis point cut in April, but ECB President Christine Lagarde's recently suggested the bank itself is looking at the summer for the first reduction.
In the US, the Bureau of Economic Analysis will report gross domestic figures, which are forecast to show that the US economy grew by 2.0% in the three months through December, slower than the 4.9% growth recorded in the third quarter.
"US bond markets appear to be starting to have second thoughts about the prospect of 6 rate cuts from the Federal Reserve this year, although there is still some insistence that a March cut remains a realistic possibility. Today's US Q4 GDP numbers might bury the prospect of that idea once and for all if we get a reading anywhere close to 2%," said CMC Markets' UK chief market analyst, Michael Hewson.