European markets are expected to begin Thursday's session in the black, as concerns over rising trade tensions between the U.S. and Europe showed signs of easing. The FTSE 100 is seen popping 10 points at 7,668, the French CAC 40 is set to open up by 28 points at 5,455 and the German DAX is expected to start off 94 points higher at 12,673, according to IG. Trade disputes between the U.S. and major economies have put markets on edge over the last month or so, and the topic continues to sway investor sentiment today. On Wednesday, President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. and the European Union had initiated a "new phase" within their relationship, explaining how both regions would begin collaborating in order to lower tariffs and avoid a potential trade war. "We agreed today, first of all, to work together towards zero tariffs, zero non-tariff barriers and zero subsidies for the non-auto industrial goods," Trump said at a press conference with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker. The U.S. leader however did not mention any talk on carmaker tariffs. Consequently, auto stocks in Europe will be in focus during trade. Closer to home, the European Central Bank is set to hold its latest monetary policy meeting on Thursday. The central bank is expected to hold steady on its policy and rate decisions at this month's meeting, as trade and the euro zone's economy takes center stage. At the previous session, the ECB outlined its plans to end its stimulus program by year-end. Switching focus, earnings season continues to have some influence over market discussion. On Thursday, Total, Airbus, Carrefour, Daimler, Nestle, Diageo, Shell and Anglo American are just a handful of businesses publishing results during the day. Other corporates to keep an eye on during market trade include Deutsche Boerse, Moncler and Valeo all of whom issued financial updates after yesterday's close. Speaking of, earnings is expected to dominate discussion on Wall Street this Thursday, after Facebook missed market expectations on both global daily active users and revenue during the second quarter. The social media giant issued its financial update after the U.S. close, with the results causing its shares to sink over 20 percent in after hours trade. As the results came after the close, the Dow rose more than 150 points by the end of trade, on the back of reports surrounding the EU and U.S.' trading relationship. In Asia, markets were mostly higher Thursday, as investors mulled over the trade news coming out of the U.S. and Europe. Aside from the ECB's rate decision, no major economic data for the euro zone is due. Source: CNBC
