At around 09:00 in Lisbon, the EuroStoxx 600 was down 0.18% at 572.78 points.
The stock markets in London, Madrid, and Milan fell by 0.36%, 0.30%, and 0.35%, respectively, while Paris and Frankfurt rose by 0.16% and 0.17%.
The Lisbon stock market maintained its opening trend, with the main index, PSI, up 0.68% at 8,204.84 points, a new high since February 2011.
After closing on Wednesday with gains of about 1%, European stock markets opened with mixed trends, closely watching the tentative agreement for a Gaza peace plan that Israel and Hamas agreed to sign early this morning in Egypt.
Besides the Gaza peace plan, which the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, might ratify this afternoon, markets remain focused on the situation in France, where French President Emmanuel Macron will appoint a new prime minister “within 48 hours,” as recommended by the outgoing Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, and the U.S. federal government shutdown that reaches its ninth day today.
Investors are also anticipating the publication of the minutes from the European Central Bank’s (ECB) last monetary policy meeting, which kept interest rates at 2% and suggested they would remain there barring any major economic changes. This follows the U.S. Federal Reserve’s minutes on Wednesday, which confirmed that the institution is inclined to make further rate cuts before the year’s end.
Wall Street futures show slight gains, not exceeding 0.10% for any of the three major indices.
The Dow Jones ended Wednesday maintaining at 46,601.78 points, compared to 46,758.28 points on October 3, marking a new high since the index was created in 1896.
The Nasdaq, a high-tech index, advanced by 1.12% to 23,043.38 points, a new all-time high.
In Asia, after resuming activities today following recent festivities, Tokyo’s main stock index, the Nikkei, rose by 1.77% and closed at a new high, driven by the increase in technology companies, particularly those related to artificial intelligence (AI).
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced today the immediate imposition of export controls on rare earth-related technologies, one of the main areas of tension between the Asian giant and the United States.
The price of gold, historically considered a safe haven in times of uncertainty, is down 0.55% today, with an ounce at $4,029.93, after hitting an all-time high of 4,056.63 points on Wednesday.
In the debt market, the 10-year German bond yields increased to 2.685%, from 2.673%, while France’s decreased to 3.504%, from 3.514% on Wednesday and a high of 3.600% on September 25.
Brent crude, the benchmark in Europe, for December delivery, is rising to $66.33, up from $66.25 on Wednesday.
As for cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin is down 0.69% and stands at $122,047, after reaching a new high of $126,251 on Monday.
The Euro rose to $1.1623 in the Frankfurt foreign exchange market, up from $1.1605 on Wednesday and a four-year high of $1.1865 on September 16.
