European markets were expected to pull back when trading resumes on Friday amid a rocky start to 2025 for stocks around the world.
The UK FTSE 100 to go down about eight points to 8,243, Germany DAX en route to a five-point drop to 19,988 and the French CAC 40 it was on track to lose 21 points to 7,369. Italy FTSE MIB it was expected to eventually fall about 107 points to 34,430.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed higher on Thursday after the first volatile trading session of the year.
Investors were weighing regional and global political uncertainty that could affect markets and the economy, including political instability in France, upcoming elections in Germany and tariffs could be under US President Donald Trump.
As for data in Europe on Friday, investors will be on the lookout for the latest inflation numbers from Turkey and Poland, as well as unemployment reports out of Germany and the Spain and UK mortgage data.
