- US stocks were firmer overnight, but Europe is struggling to replicate
- UK retail sales are rebounding fast
- Gold is steady, oil subsiding
European markets are tentatively higher in early trade on Friday, solidifying gains from Thursday’s upbeat session as global stocks made gains. DAX traded not far off recent intra-day all-time high at 15,440, but 15,500 continues to act as headwind for bulls and early gains were largely pared after one hour of trading, whilst the FTSE 100 dropped more than half of one per cent in early trade to drop under the key 7,000 level. Tech shares led a rebound on Wall Street as stocks in the US snapped a three-day losing streak. The S&P 500 rallied over 1 per cent to 4,159, with the Nasdaq up 1.8 per cent to 13,535. NDX rallied almost 2 per cent as the big tech names that have the biggest impact on the index put in a strong day with Apple and Netflix both up 2 per cent, with other FAANGs rising 1 per cent and Tesla +4 per cent and ARKK rose 3.5 per cent. Futures indicate the major US indices will open higher later.
