European markets slightly higher ahead of expected rate cut from the European Central Bank

European markets slightly higher ahead of expected rate cut from the European Central Bank


European markets moved higher at the start of the session, as regional investors await this year’s final monetary policy decision from the European Central Bank (ECB).

The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was up 0.08% by 9:00 a.m. London time, with all major bourses and most sectors trading in the green. Oil and gas stocks added 0.92%, while media stocks dipped 0.28%.

The central bank is heading for its final interest rate cut of the year on Thursday, with economists expecting a 25-basis-point rate cut rather than the “jumbo” 50-basis-point move that was previously expected. The ECB is also due to release its quarterly macroeconomic projections on growth and inflation.

The Swiss National Bank also announced latest monetary policy decision Thursday, cutting rates by 50 basis points.

It comes as traders continue to digest the latest inflation data out of the U.S. The figures showed that consumer prices rose 0.3% month on month and grew at a 12-month rate of 2.7%, in line with economists’ estimates.

The producer price index report is due Thursday. The prints mark the last major economic data releases before the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting next week.

Traders are still betting that the Fed will cut rates; Fed funds futures are pricing in a more-than 98% likelihood that the central bank lowers rates at that meeting, according to CME’s FedWatch Tool.

Overnight, Asia-Pacific markets were mostly higher following post-inflation data gains on Wall Street that saw the Nasdaq Composite top the 20,000 threshold, posting an all-time high and a closing record. U.S. stock futures slid Thursday morning.



Source

Men Trump administration had sent to El Salvador’s CECOT prison exchanged in prisoner swap
World

Men Trump administration had sent to El Salvador’s CECOT prison exchanged in prisoner swap

Ten Americans freed from Venezuelan prision. Courtesy: U.S. Embassy The Venezuelan immigrants whom the Trump administration had sent to a notorious mega prison in El Salvador have been flown from there to Venezuela, according to El Salvador President Nayib Bukele. The move, Bukele said in a post on X, was part of a prisoner swap in which the […]

Read More
Trump pushes for 15-20% minimum tariffs on European Union: FT
World

Trump pushes for 15-20% minimum tariffs on European Union: FT

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Bahraini Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on July 16, 2025. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | AFP | Getty Images U.S. President Donald Trump is demanding a minimum of 15-20% tariffs on imports from the European Union, […]

Read More
Meta says it won’t sign Europe AI agreement, calling it an overreach that will stunt growth
World

Meta says it won’t sign Europe AI agreement, calling it an overreach that will stunt growth

Jakub Porzycki | Nurphoto | Getty Images Meta Platforms declined to sign the European Union’s artificial intelligence code of practice because it is an overreach that will “stunt” companies, according to global affairs chief Joel Kaplan. “Europe is heading down the wrong path on AI,” Kaplan wrote in a post on LinkedIn Friday. “This code […]

Read More