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European stocks may open broadly higher on Thursday ahead of a European Central Bank (ECB) policy meeting later in the day. <\/p>\n
The ECB is all but certain to keep interest rates steady but may open the door open for a September rate cut.<\/p>\n
Asian stocks were broadly lower, with Japan’s Nikkei falling over 2 percent as the yen scaled a six-week high due to suspected BOJ intervention. <\/p>\n
Tech shares were among the worst hit after reports that the United States was mulling tighter curbs on exports of advanced semiconductor technology<\/span> to China.<\/p>\n As trade tensions mount, traders also awaited policy news from a key leadership gathering in Beijing.<\/p>\n The U.S. dollar held near its weakest in four months against a basket of currencies while gold held firm near record highs on bets for interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve in September. <\/p>\n Oil extended overnight gains after data showed a bigger-than-expected drop in U.S. crude stocks.<\/p>\n U.S. stocks ended mixed overnight as shares of chipmakers and large-cap companies retreated on valuation concerns. <\/p>\n In economic releases, data showed housing starts and building permits recovered in June. A measure of U.S. industrial production cooled in the month but still exceeded analyst expectations.<\/p>\n The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plummeted 2.8 percent amid talk of tougher rules to rein in China’s chip industry and Trump’s comments that Taiwan should pay the U.S. for defense. The S&P 500 tumbled 1.4 percent while the Dow rose 0.6 percent.<\/p>\n European stocks fell broadly on Wednesday after a profit warning from Dutch semiconductor firm ASML and amid worries about slowing Chinese demand. <\/p>\n The pan European STOXX 600 dropped half a percent. The German DAX shed 0.4 percent and France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.1 percent while the U.K.’s FTSE 100 edged up 0.3 percent. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n Business News<\/p>\n<\/div>\n