Jun 03, 2022 03:25AM ET
By: AnalysisWatch
European shares opened higher on Friday as investors waited for US payrolls data to bet on a tightening of central bank policy, while preparing for a possible change in the European Central Bank's stance at next week's meeting.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was up 0.4 percent as of 07:07 GMT, on track to erase almost all of its weekly losses.
Investors are hopeful that any signs of a slowdown in the US labour market will tip the Federal Reserve towards a softer policy stance.
Meanwhile, this week's data, which showed record inflation in the eurozone, fuelled bets that the ECB could be forced to tighten more quickly or raise interest rates more significantly.
So far, the central bank has signalled that it intends to start raising rates in July to reach 0% or more by September.
Healthcare and luxury goods stocks supported the STOXX 600 index in early trade.
On the other hand, French car parts supplier Faurecia fell 3.5 per cent, finishing at the bottom of the index. The company said it had launched a 705 million euro ($758 million) capital raising to finance the acquisition of German rival Hella.
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