Title: European Stock Futures Higher; Corporate Earnings Deluge Continues

Apr 28, 2022 01:59AM ET

By: AnalysisWatch

European stock markets are forecast to open with gains on Thursday, as investors are awaiting the most recent developments in the conflict with Russia over gas supplies to Europe, as well as the release of quarterly corporate earnings. At 2am, DAX futures in Germany were trading 0.8% higher, CAC 40 futures in France were rising 0.4%, and FTSE 100 futures in the UK were gaining 0.4%.

European markets were rattled on Wednesday by news that Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom had halted gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria until both countries met Moscow's demands to pay for fuel in roubles. The move is intended to mitigate the impact of Western sanctions imposed after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

European Union energy ministers will convene in an emergency meeting on Monday to review the situation, while the Biden administration has authorized additional requests for U.S. natural gas exports to counter Russia's efforts to weaponize the fuel against its Ukrainian allies.

European stock markets have also suffered this month on concerns that the protracted COVID outbreak in China, the world's second-largest economy, will hurt domestic and global growth. Meanwhile, a policy shift by the US Federal Reserve has led to fears that growth in the US will slow as the country's central bank struggles to contain rapidly rising inflation.

Elsewhere in Europe, corporate quarterly results are set for another busy day.

Spirits group Pernod Ricard posted a 20% rise in organic sales in the third quarter, helped by strong demand in key markets in the US, China and Europe.

Sanofi reported first-quarter profit growth of more than 16%, driven by continued growth in sales of its best-selling drug, Dupixent. Telecom equipment maker Nokia posted a better-than-expected quarterly operating profit, while consultancy Capgemini on Thursday reported a rise in first-quarter revenue, citing growth in its cloud and data operations.