12.03.202606:07:37UTC+00European Stocks Head Lower on Oil Rally

European equity markets were poised to open lower on Thursday, extending the previous session’s losses as rising oil prices heightened inflation concerns and further reduced expectations for imminent central bank rate cuts. Oil prices advanced for a second consecutive day, with worries over a potentially protracted conflict involving Iran outweighing the impact of a coordinated release of strategic reserves by major economies.

The European Union cautioned that inflation across the bloc could surpass 3% this year. On the trade front, the Trump administration opened new investigations targeting China, the EU, and several other economies, with the aim of establishing fresh measures to replace President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, which were recently invalidated by the Supreme Court.

No major economic data releases are scheduled in Europe today. Corporate earnings are due from BMW, RWE, and Daimler Truck, among others. In premarket trading, Euro Stoxx 50 futures were down 0.9%, and Stoxx 600 futures were 0.7% lower.