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At 02:15 ET (06:15 GMT), the DAX futures contract in Germany traded 0.3% higher, CAC 40 futures in France climbed 0.5% and the FTSE 100 futures contract in the U.K. rose 0.2%.
The U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point on Wednesday, as widely expected, marking the central bank’s 11th rate increase in its last 12 meetings.
While Fed Chair Jerome Powell kept open the possibility of a further hike later in the year, confidence is growing that this could be the last increase of the cycle.
Additionally, Powell noted that the central bank no longer expects a U.S. recession, raising the possibility of a so-called soft landing for the largest economy in the world and a major global growth driver.
Attention now turns to the European Central Bank, which is also expected to raise interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point later in the session.
Given a hike is largely baked in, the focus will be on President Christine Lagarde’s following press conference for clues on what’s to come later in the summer.
Inflation remains elevated in the eurozone, with annual CPI at 5.5% in June, but growth is slowing and recent comments from council members have tended towards the dovish side.
Turning to the corporate sector, the quarterly earnings season continues in full flow.
French carmaker Renault (EPA:RENA) reported a record operating margin for the first half of the year, helped by higher prices for its new cars and cost reductions.
Food giant Nestle (SIX:NESN) lifted its full-year sales outlook after raising prices to cope with higher input costs, while French retailer Casino (EPA:CASP) posted an operating loss in the first half of 2023, as falling sales and price cuts at its hypermarkets and supermarkets hit its core French operations.
In the U.S., results are due from the likes of Intel (NASDAQ:INTC), Ford (NYSE:F), Mastercard (NYSE:MA), and McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD).
Oil prices rose Thursday, rebounding from the previous session’s losses as traders focused on expectations of tighter supplies from major oil producers, even after the Federal Reserve tightened monetary policy once more.
Saudi Arabia and Russia both recently announced plans to cut production further in August, in an attempt to boost prices by tightening global supply.
Oil prices fell on Wednesday after data showed U.S. crude inventories fell less than expected and the Federal Reserve raised interest rates again.
By 02:15 ET, U.S. crude futures traded 0.9% higher at $79.50 a barrel, while the Brent contract climbed 0.7% to $83.17.
Additionally, gold futures rose 0.3% to $1,975.95/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.1% higher at 1.1096.
