10 things you need to know before European markets open
An EgyptAir flight from Paris to Cairo has disappeared. According to the airline, the Airbus A320 carrying 66 passengers had apparently reached an elevation of 37,000 feet around the moment it disappeared.
UK banks' IT is under scrutiny. The Bank of England ordered UK banks to detail steps taken to secure computers connected to the SWIFT bank messaging network about two months after a still-unidentified group used the system to steal $81 million from Bank Bangladesh.
A second rate hike is on the cards in the US. The Federal Reserve will likely raise interest rates in June if economic data points to stronger second-quarter growth as well as firming inflation and employment, according to minutes from the U.S. central bank's April policy meeting released on Wednesday.
Russia is selling a lot of weapons. Russia's arms export agency hopes to meet its arms export target worth $14 billion set for this year, agency head Alexander Fomin said on Wednesday.
The emissions scandal is widening. German officials have asked representatives from General Motors' Opel division to provide them with more information to help with their investigations into carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) from its cars, Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt said.
NATO might find it hard to buy all the arms it needs. Pressure from the United States on NATO allies to increase their defense spending could strain the capacity of the arms industry to keep up with demand, the head of Swedish fighter jet and submarine builder Saab said.
JPMorgan is getting sued. A former London-based JPMorgan foreign exchange sales person is suing the Wall Street bank for unfair dismissal, according to a court filing. Patrice Ktorza is scheduled to appear at the Stratford Employment Tribunal on June 1.
The New York Stock Exchange hit a glitch. The company said it was experiencing a technical issue that sent trading to other exchange venues in a subset of symbols. Several exchanges, including Nasdaq and Bats Global Markets were affected.
VW is annoyed. Volkswagen has expressed frustration about the slow pace of investigations into its emissions scandal, responding to demands from an activist shareholder for rapid reforms at the German carmaker.
There was trouble in Paris. A police car was set ablaze in Paris on Wednesday after an angry crowd surrounded the vehicle as tensions ran high over accusations of police brutality against protesters, police officials and witnesses said.