Trade Magnates - U.S. and European stocks on a high note on Thursday ahead of the European Central Bank “ECB” policy decision and the U.S. initial jobless claim release.
The Dow futures increased by 16 points, the Nasdaq 100 futures higher by 3 points and the S&P500 futures rose one and a half points. Spain’s IBEX 35 surged 41 points and Germany’s DAX jumped 32 points. In London, the FTSE 100 rose 26 points.
Analysts and investors are waiting on the release of jobless claims, trade balance and pending home sales data in the forthcoming US session as they will be the key economic market moving releases for today. U.S. initial jobless claims will be released 1:30 PM GMT. Investors will be watching this data closely for signs that the Federal Reserve could increase rates in December.
The European Central Bank is expected to unwind its quantitative easing program. Investors will focus on ECB President Mario Draghi’s press conference after the policy decision, for details of how or when the central bank will start tapering its asset purchasing program.