European shares were indicated to edge lower on Friday as a late sell-off on Wall Street and losses in Asian stocks overnight dented investor appetite after a sharp equity bounce in Europe in the previous session.
Futures for the Euro STOXX 50 equity index, Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC were between flat and 0.2 per cent lower at 0750 GMT.
The FTSE, the CAC and the DAX gained between 1.7 per cent and 2.4 per cent on the previous day as the lifting of a Swiss cap on the franc was interpreted as a sign the Swiss National Bank must be expecting an unstoppable tide of euros from the European Central Bank (ECB) through quantitative easing, which is seen as positive for stocks.
Yet global equities remained volatile after the Swiss move, which jolted markets already roiled by plunging commodities prices, and both US and Asian stocks fell overnight.
Among single stocks, BP was set to open between 1 per cent and 2 per cent higher as it faced a maximum fine of $13.7 billion under the Clean Water Act for its Gulf of Mexico oil spill, several billion less than feared, after a judge found on Thursday the size of the spill was smaller than the US government claimed.
World No.2 retailer Carrefour said sales growth accelerated in the fourth quarter, reflecting an improved performance in its key markets of France, Spain and Brazil, which generate over 70 per cent of group revenue.
The CAC and DAX indexes have each risen more than 3 per cent so far this week, while the FTSE is roughly flat.