European Shares Likely To Drift Lower Ahead Of US Jobs Data

(RTTNews) - European stocks may open broadly lower on Friday as confusion reigns around U.S. President Donald Trump's policy agenda and the impact of his trade policies on inflation, interest rates and economic growth.

Trump said on Thursday that his administration would not consider stock market reaction when hammering out the details of its tariff policy.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent rejected the idea that tariff hikes will ignite a new wave of inflation and suggested that the Federal Reserve ought to view them as having a one-time impact.

U.S. stock futures ticked higher following encouraging results from chipmaker Broadcom Inc.

Eurozone GDP data and the U.S. jobs report may garner investor attention later in the day.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell gives keynote speech at an event in New York hosted by University of Chicago Booth School of Business later in the day.

Fed officials John Williams, Michelle Bowman and Adriana Kugler are also due to speak.

Asian stocks traded mixed, with Australian and Japanese markets leading regional losses on concerns that tariff-induced inflation amid slower growth could bring the U.S. economy dangerously close to stagflation.

Mainland Chinese and Hong Kong markets ticked higher after Chinese Finance Minister Lan Fo'an said the government has ample fiscal policy tools and space to respond to possible domestic and external challenges.

Data showed today that China's imports unexpectedly shrank over the January-February period and exports also lost momentum, casting a shadow over the recovery in the world's second-largest economy.

Treasuries edged up slightly after a muted session on Thursday. The U.S. dollar struggled near a four-month low while gold edged lower but was on track for a weekly gain.

Oil was marginally higher but was on track for its biggest weekly decline since October on tariff-related worries and fears of oversupply in the market.

U.S. stocks fell sharply overnight, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq officially entering into correction territory on the mixed messaging coming from the White house and renewed concerns about spending on artificial intelligence as China doubles down on AI and tech innovation.

The U.S. trade deficit widened to a record high in January amid front-loading of imports ahead of tariffs, suggesting that trade could be a drag on economic growth in the first quarter.

The Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 plummeted 2.6 percent and 1.8 percent to reach five and four-month closing lows, respectively amid worries that President Trump's much-vaunted policy of trade tariffs will hurt domestic growth. The narrower Dow lost 1 percent.

European stocks ended mixed on Thursday as the European Central Bank reduced interest rates by 25 basis points, as widely expected, and signaled more cuts may be in store.

The pan European STOXX 600 finished marginally lower after a choppy session. The German DAX rallied 1.5 percent amid ongoing optimism for a massive increase in public spending in the country.

France's CAC 40 edged up by 0.3 percent while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 shed 0.8 percent.