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European stocks are seen opening higher on Friday after the S&P 500 index closed at a new record high for the third consecutive day overnight despite concerns about slowing consumer spending. <\/p>\n
U.S. reports on import prices, retail sales, industrial production and consumer sentiment due later in the day may provide further clues about the direction of the world’s largest economy<\/span>. <\/p>\n Tech stocks could be in focus today after Applied Materials Inc., the largest American producer of chipmaking gear, issued disappointing sales and profit forecast, citing a slowdown in China. <\/p>\n Additionally, reports suggest that the Trump administration is considering taking a stake in Intel to back its delayed Ohio chip hub.<\/p>\n Investors also eye the summit between the U.S. and Russian presidents in Alaska, with U.S. President Donald Trump saying he believes his Russian counterpart is ready to make a deal to end the war in Ukraine.<\/p>\n Asian markets<\/span> were mostly higher, though Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell more than 1 percent as China’s retail sales and industrial output figures fell short of expectations in July. Elsewhere, Japan Q2 GDP beat forecasts, fueling BoJ rate hike bets.<\/p>\n The dollar index was a tad softer and oil prices dipped ahead of Alaska summit, while gold ticked up but poised for a weekly decline.<\/p>\n Overnight, U.S. stocks fluctuated before ending narrowly mixed as a much hotter-than-expected PPI inflation print dampened investor euphoria over a possible September rate cut.<\/p>\n Data showed producer prices rose 0.9 percent month-over-month in July compared to expectations of 0.2 percent.<\/p>\n On an annual basis, prices rose 3.3 percent, the most since February and up from an upwardly revised 2.4 percent in June.<\/p>\n “Core” producer prices, which exclude food, energy, and trade services, saw the largest increase in three years.<\/p>\n The S&P 500 inched up marginally to a new record closing high, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite and the Dow ended flat with negative bias.<\/p>\n European stocks closed at their highest level in more than two months on Thursday amid hopes the Trump-Putin summit might help end the war in Ukraine.<\/p>\n The pan European STOXX 600 gained 0.6 percent. The German DAX and France’s CAC 40 both surged around 0.8 percent while the U.K.’s FTSE 100 inched up 0.1 percent. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n