Delta variant, U.S. data in focus

European stocks are heading for a muted open Tuesday as global investors monitor the spread of the delta Covid-19 variant and await key economic data out of the U.S.

Britain’s FTSE 100 is seen around 4 points lower at 7,069, Germany’s DAX is set to inch around 8 points lower to 15,546 and France’s CAC 40 is set to shed a single point to 6,557, according to IG data.

Shares in Asia-Pacific retreated on Tuesday despite overnight gains on Wall Street, which saw the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite close at record highs. U.S. stock futures are pointing to a fractionally lower open on Tuesday. Oil prices tumbled overnight as flare-ups of Covid-19 infections threaten to dent fuel demand.

Concerns over the rapid spread of the new highly contagious Covid-19 delta variant have dented sentiment in Asia-Pacific, with several countries in the region battling outbreaks.

Global investors are also looking ahead to potentially significant U.S. labor market data later in the week, as markets look to gauge whether the U.S. Federal Reserve will be forced to consider tightening monetary policy sooner than planned. The Labor Department’s key jobs report is due Friday.

Back in Europe, European Central Bank policymakers on Monday began a public discussion about when and how to wind down the massive emergency bond purchase program launched last year to support the euro zone economy through the pandemic.

Euro zone economic, industrial and services sentiment surveys for June will be published at 10 a.m. London time on Tuesday, along with a June consumer confidence reading and inflation expectations. German consumer price index inflation figures are due Tuesday afternoon.

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