British News Agency

According to analysts, the UK’s FTSE and Germany’s DAX indices are expected to open slightly higher, while France’s CAC 40 is forecast to rise by 0.24% and Italy’s FTSE MIB by 0.11%.

The expected subdued opening in Europe follows a calming of regional markets after a short-lived sell-off in cryptocurrencies and precious metals.

Earnings will again be in focus on Wednesday. Novartis, Banco Santander, GSK, Infineon Technologies, Equinor, Credit Agricole, Handelsbanken, Carlsberg and OMV are set to report their results.

UBS released its fourth-quarter results ahead of the open, with net profit exceeding analysts’ expectations.

Novo Nordisk’s share price will be closely watched on Wednesday after the company released its results earlier than planned on Tuesday. The company told investors it expects sales and profit growth to slow this year due to price cuts in the US and the end of the monopoly on its best-selling weight-loss drugs Wegovy and Ozempic in China, Brazil and Canada.

Asia-Pacific markets mostly fell overnight, tracking losses on Wall Street, as the sell-off in US technology stocks in the previous session weighed on market sentiment. Gold, meanwhile, extended its gains for a second day.

US equity futures linked to the S&P 500 traded flat overnight.