Europe: Stock markets mixed before BoE rate call

[LONDON] Europe's main stock markets were narrowly mixed in opening deals on Thursday, ahead of an interest rate decision from the Bank of England.

London's benchmark FTSE 100 index of major blue-chip companies nudged 0.1 per cent lower to stand at 7,379.23 points.

But in the eurozone, Frankfurt's DAX 30 added 0.1 per cent to 12,767.13 and the Paris CAC 40 won 0.2 per cent to 5,409.90 points compared with the closing levels of the previous day.

Global stock markets on Wednesday took news of US President Donald Trump's shock firing of FBI director James Comey in their stride, and eyed rising oil prices.

Asian equities advanced Thursday with energy firms providing strong support as a result of higher oil prices, while the dollar held gains against the yen as a top Federal Reserve official reinforced expectations for further interest rate hikes.

AFP