European stocks may open flat to slightly higher in cautious trade on Thursday as the U.K. elects its next Parliament, with investors waiting to see just how large a majority the Labour Party might get.
Elsewhere in France, a shaky coalition is emerging to block France\'s far right from power as the second round of early general elections approaches.
Scores of candidates opposed to France\'s far-right National Rally (RN) party bowed out of Sunday\'s second round of voting after the RN garnered the most votes in the first round.
Asian markets were mostly higher, though a holiday in the United States made for thin trading.
The dollar slipped while gold edged up as June\'s weak U.S. ISM PMIs, rising jobless claims and signs of slowdown in private-sector employment helped raise bets the Federal Reserve could move as soon as September to begin lowering borrowing costs.
All eyes now remain on Friday\'s closely watched monthly U.S. jobs report, which may shed light on how much the economy has slowed in 2024.
Factory orders and construction Purchasing Managers\' survey results from Germany are due later in the session, headlining a busy day for the European economic news.
Oil prices eased in Asian trade, after having risen overnight on data showing a surprisingly large decline in U.S. crude stocks.
U.S. stocks rose broadly overnight as weak economic data cemented hopes for an interest-rate cut in September.
Treasury yields fell and the dollar slumped as data showed initial jobless claims rose last week, the U.S. services sector contracted in June at the fastest pace in four years and private-sector job creation slowed for a third straight month, with pay gains for both job stayers and job changers slowing.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 0.9 percent and the S&P 500 gained half a percent to hit new record closing highs in an abbreviated trading session while the Dow ended flat with a negative bias.
European stocks closed on a firm note Wednesday after Fed Chair Jerome Powell said inflation was heading downwards.
The pan European STOXX 600 advanced 0.7 percent. The German DAX and France\'s CAC 40 both rallied by 1.2 percent while the U.K.\'s FTSE 100 added 0.6 percent.