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European Markets Indicate Lower Open(Alliance News Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) PARIS (Alliance News) - The European markets are poised for a lower open on Friday, amid the release of earnings from some big companies and mixed outing in Asia, after German consumer climate for November improved unexpectedly. German consumer climate for November improved unexpectedly, survey data revealed. The forward-looking consumer confidence index rose slightly to 8.5 in November from 8.4 in October, market research group GfK said. The score was forecast to fall to 8. On the economic front, at 4:30 am ET, UK Office for National Statistics is due to release its preliminary gross domestic product, or GDP, and index of services. GDP is expected to grow 3% year-over-year in the third quarter after the 3.2% rise in the previous quarter. On a quarter-over-quarter basis, GDP is estimated to increase 0.7% following the 0.9% growth in the second quarter. The DAX futures are losing 41.00 points, the CAC 40 futures are falling 21.50 points and the Euro Stoxx 50 futures are down 16.00 points. The FTSE 100 futures and the Swiss Market Index futures are falling 21.00 points and 18.00 points, respectively. The European markets closed higher on Thursday, with German and French markets posting strong gains. The DAX gained 1.2%, the CAC 40 added 1.3%. The FTSE 100 index and the Swiss Market index advanced 0.3% and 0.5%, respectively. On the corporate front, German chemical giant BASF SE reported a marginal fall in profit for the third quarter which was marked with geopolitical tensions and increasing fears of economic growth. The company backed its profit forecast for the year, but warned that it would not achieve its ambitious financial targets for 2015 due to the tough economy. French industrial and medical gases maker Air Liquide SA said its third-quarter revenue edged up 1% to 3.80 billion euros from the prior year. On a comparable basis, revenues grew 4.3%. Gas & Services sales edged up 0.1% on a reported basis and grew 3.6% on a comparable basis. Swedish mobile network equipment maker Ericsson posted a 13% decline in third-quarter net income. Sales in the quarter rose 9% to 57.6 billion kronor. Volvo said its third-quarter income was 1.55 billion Swedish kronor, higher than last year's 1.42 billion kronor. Net sales climbed to 67.22 billion kronor from last year's 64.88 billion kronor. In Asia/Pacific, markets were mixed with investors exercising caution, in response to news about a confirmed case of Ebola virus in New York. The US futures indicate a open on Wall Street. In the previous session, stocks closed sharply higher in reaction to upbeat earnings. The Dow jumped 1.3%, the Nasdaq soared 1.6% and the S&P 500 added 1.3%. Among commodities, crude for December delivery is losing USD0.31 to USD81.78 per barrel, while December gold is advancing USD2.4 to USD1231.5 a troy ounce. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX |