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LONDON — European stocks are expected to open higher on Friday, as investors closely monitored further escalations in the Russia-Ukraine war.
The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 33 points higher at 8,184, Germany's DAX up 28 points at 19,174, France's CAC up 5 points at 7,221 and Italy's FTSE MIB up 52 points at 33,402, according to data from IG.
It comes after the pan-European Stoxx 600 index snapped a four-session losing streak to close around 0.5% higher on Thursday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday responded to the U.S. and U.K., allowing Kyiv to strike Russian territory with Western weapons by firing a hypersonic ballistic missile at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.
The strike marked a further escalation in the 33-month-old war and came shortly after Russia lowered its threshold for using nuclear weapons.
Gold prices extended gains on Friday and were on course for their best week in a year amid concerns over the conflict.
Asia-Pacific markets mostly rose on Friday, tracking gains on Wall Street that saw the S&P 500 index log gains for a fourth straight day.
U.S. stock futures edged higher overnight, on track to end the week with gains across the three major averages.
German economy ekes out 0.1% growth in third quarter
A electric Ford Explorer is seen as the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visits the electric car production line at the Ford automobile factory on June 12, 2023 in Cologne, Germany.
Lukas Schulze | Getty Images
The German economy expanded by 0.1% in the third quarter on the previous three months — lower than a preliminary reading of 0.2% for the period.
"In the 2nd quarter, economic performance dropped 0.3%, after having risen slightly (+0.2%) in the 1st quarter. Following this generally subdued performance in the first half of 2024, the German economy begins the second half of the year with modest growth," the country's Federal Statistical Office said in a statement.
— Katrina Bishop
CNBC Pro: HSBC names 2 China stock picks for 2025 — and gives one over 70% upside
Chinese markets are "turning a corner" following a series of government stimulus measures, HSBC said, naming its top stock ideas for 2025.
"Mainland China has announced a slew of policies to help ensure that local governments can pay their bills and service debt. This should reduce the risk of an immediate slowdown in growth in mainland China and the market has so far reacted positively to these initiatives," the investment bank's analysts wrote in a Nov. 19 research note.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Amala Balakrishner
English (US)