10 things you need to know before European markets open
It's Bank of England day. The Bank of England will release its latest monetary policy decisions at 12.00 p.m. GMT (8.00 a.m. ET) with Governor Mark Carney giving a press conference afterwards. The bank also releases its quarterly Inflation Report.
Fed holds rates and says it is waiting for 'some further evidence' before hiking again. The Federal Reserve on Wednesday left its benchmark fed funds rate unchanged, as expected, and said the case for a hike continued to strengthen. Two FOMC members thought the committee should have voted to raise rates at its two-day meeting this week.
Crude oil prices rose on Thursday as a weaker U.S. dollar buoyed sentiment in the market, lifting prices from five-week lows. West Texas Intermediate crude was trading up 42 cents, or 0.93% at $45.76 a barrel by 6.45 a.m. GMT (2.45 a.m. ET) after touching a five-week low at $46.46 in the previous session.
The High Court will rule on whether the government needs parliament to trigger EU exit. Prime Minister Theresa May will learn on Thursday whether she must seek parliamentary approval before triggering the formal process of leaving the European Union, a step some investors hope will lessen the chances of an economically disruptive "hard Brexit." The decision will be released around 10.00 a.m. GMT (6.00 a.m. ET).
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is probing to see if Wells Fargo & Co violated rules around investor disclosures. It is also looking into other matters relating to its recent sales tactics scandal, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.
It is Services PMI day in the UK. Britain will get a latest indication from IHS Markit's widely watched Purchasing Managers Index about the state of the country's dominant services sector on Thursday. The data will be released at 9.30 a.m. GMT (5.30 a.m. ET).
European unemployment data will also drop. At 10.00 a.m. GMT (6.00 a.m. ET) we'll get Eurostat's latest print on how the unemployment picture looks across the eurozone. The consensus forecast of economists is that unemployment in the single currency area will drop from 10.1% to 10%.
The race between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton continues to show signs of tightening, less than a week before Election Day. A new IBD tracking poll of national voters found the two major-party presidential nominees tied with 44% support. Clinton had been up in the poll by 5 percentage points.
The UK's Pensions Regulator is taking formal action against Sir Philip Green and other former owners of BHS. The regulator said it looking for redress for BHS's 20,000 pension scheme members following an investigation. It has sent warning notices to Sir Philip, the Arcadia group - the retail group Green owns - and Dominic Chappell, the former racing driver who owned BHS when it collapse, the BBC reports.
Another top trading executive has left Credit Suisse in New York. Chip Clingham, the head of equity sales trading in New York, is among those to have recently left the bank in another round of layoffs, according to people familiar with the matter. Clingham is a veteran of the equities industry and spent over seven years at the bank.