European markets are set for a flat open on Friday to close out an upbeat week, as the US Federal Reserve’s latest meeting minutes added to expectations that monetary policy tightening may slow down.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed up 0.5% on Thursday, with a third straight session of gains taking it to a more than three-month high.
Minutes from the Fed’s November meeting signaled that the central bank is seeing progress in its fight against high inflation and is looking to slow the pace of rate hikes.
“A substantial majority of participants judged that a slowing in the pace of increase would likely soon be appropriate,” the minutes stated.
European investors also reacted well to several economic data points over the course of the week that have indicated a slightly shallower recession than previously feared.
Shares in Asia-Pacific were mostly lower on Friday, while US markets were closed for Thanksgiving on Thursday and are set for an early close on Friday.
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