European stocks edged higher in cautious trade on Tuesday as markets prepared for the Christmas break.
The German DAX is closed for trading today, while the FTSE 100 and CAC 40 are scheduled early closures for Christmas Eve.
The Paris market will close at 1:00 pm (local time), while the London market will close at 12:30 pm (local time).
Markets in the UK, Germany, Spain, and France will remain shut on Wednesday and Thursday for the Christmas holiday.
The pan-European STOXX 600 rose 0.4% to 503.94, building on Monday’s 0.1% gain.
There is no major economic data scheduled for release from Europe on Tuesday.
Trading volumes are expected to be very thin due to the Christmas break.
The benchmark FTSE 100 was up 24 points, or 0.5%, at 8,144.99.
Energy shares tracked rising oil prices, with BP gaining 0.5% and Shell up 0.8%.
In contrast, Vistry Group plunged over 17% after issuing its third profit warning this year, citing delays in year-end transactions and completions.
The French CAC 40 was also trading 0.48% higher at 7,307.06.
Asian peers remain mixed
Asian stock markets moved within a tight range before closing mostly higher on Monday, with Hong Kong and Sydney wrapping up shortened sessions for Christmas Eve.
China and Hong Kong saw strong rallies after China’s Finance Ministry announced plans to boost public spending, focusing on stimulating domestic demand growth in 2025.
The Shanghai Composite surged 1.26% to close at 3,393.53, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 1.08% to 20,098.29.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell 0.32% to 39,036.85, weighed down by concerns over exchange rate volatility, as Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato reiterated discomfort with excessive foreign exchange moves.
Heavyweights SoftBank and Fast Retailing fell 1.4% and 0.6%, respectively.
However, automotive stocks saw a boost after Honda, Nissan, and Mitsubishi announced discussions about a merger by 2026.
Honda surged 12.2%, Nissan gained 6%, and Mitsubishi climbed 7.2%.
South Korea’s Kospi ended slightly lower, losing 0.2% to close at 2,440.52, amid concerns over political instability and weak consumer sentiment data, which showed the sharpest decline in more than two years.
Australian markets edged up modestly, with the S&P/ASX 200 rising 0.24% to 8,220.90, led by gains in the tech and energy sectors.
US stock futures indicate rally for tech stocks
US stock futures on Tuesday indicated another good for tech stocks.
S&P 500 futures were in the green early Tuesday after all three major averages started the holiday-shortened trading week on a positive note.
Futures linked to the broad market index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average remained around the flatline, while Nasdaq 100 futures added 0.2%.
Tech giants like Tesla, Apple and Nvidia were all in the green in pre-market trading on Tuesday.
The post European stocks edge higher ahead of Christmas break: FTSE up 0.5%, CAC jumps 0.4% appeared first on Invezz
