European Shares Likely To Open On Firm Note As Middle East Tensions Ease

(RTTNews) - European stocks are likely to open on a steady note Monday as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East eased, given Iran's tamed response to Israel's apparently small strike against the country.

Asian markets rebounded while gold and the safe-haven dollar pulled back as investors shifted focus to earnings and a slew of U.S. data due this week for directional cues.

This week's trading may be impacted by reaction to the latest U.S. economic data, including reports on new home sales, durable goods orders and personal income and spending.

S&P flash U.S. services PMI and S&P flash U.S. manufacturing PMI readings for April will be released on Tuesday. Thursday will see the release of the U.S. GDP data for the first quarter.

The Commerce Department's personal income and spending report includes readings on inflation said to be preferred by the Federal Reserve.

On the earnings front, Tesla, Boeing, IBM, Caterpillar, Honeywell, Alphabet, Intel, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Chevron and Exxon Mobil are among the prominent companies due to report their quarterly results.

Crude oil prices extended their decline and were down about 1 percent in Asian trading as market participants continue to unwind the risk premium tied to potential supply disruptions.

Higher-than-expected build in U.S. crude inventories and expectations of delayed rate cuts from the Federal Reserve also weighed on oil prices.

Chicago Federal Reserve President Austan Goolsbee said on Friday that it makes sense to keep policy on hold because of "stalled" progress on inflation.

U.S. stocks ended mixed on Friday, with tech stocks plummeting as Netflix provided disappointing revenue guidance.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plunged 2.1 percent and the S&P 500 shed 0.9 percent to extend losses for the sixth straight session while the Dow rose 0.6 percent, led by financials and consumer staple stocks.

European stocks also ended mixed on Friday after Israel's apparently small retaliatory strike on Iran.

The pan European STOXX 600 ended flat with a negative bias. The German DAX dipped 0.6 percent and France's CAC 40 finished marginally lower while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 edged up 0.2 percent.