The morning after US President Trump’s announcement of European and worldwide trade tariffs, which included a 10% levy for imported goods from the UK, shoppers spend on Oxford Street beneath union jack flags in London’s West End, on 3rd April 2025, in London, England.
Richard Baker | In Pictures | Getty Images
LONDON — The U.K.’s FTSE 100 opened slightly lower on Thursday, with most other European markets closed for the May 1 holiday.
The FTSE 100 dipped 0.3% in early deals after notching its 13th straight positive session in its longest winning run since late 2016 into early 2017. Stock exchanges in Germany, France, Italy and Spain are closed.
“Bank stocks overall still look pretty good globally… those growth risks that’s we’re facing now that are centered around the U.S., that should be helping European financials,” Max Kettner, chief multi-asset strategist at HSBC, told CNBC’s “Europe Early Edition” on Thursday.
“Overall it is still time to play defense, particularly in the U.S., the likes of small caps, consumer cyclicals are the ones you really want to avoid, go more toward the defensives, your staples, your health-care, your utilities.”
U.S. stock futures ticked higher early Thursday after Big Tech earnings beats from Meta Platforms and Microsoft.
