LIVE MARKETS-Europe before the bell: futures up as tariff tensions ease

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EUROPE BEFORE THE BELL: FUTURES UP AS TARIFF TENSIONS EASE

European stocks are heading for rises at the open, as markets react positively to U.S. President Donald Trump saying he will exempt automakers from his punishing 25% tariffs for one month, meanwhile traders are gearing up for Thursday's ECB meeting.

EuroSTOXX50 STXEc1 futures are up 1%, while FTSE futures FFIc1 are up 0.6% and DAX futures FDXc1 are ticking 0.9% higher.

Trump said he will exempt automakers from the tariffs as long as they comply with existing free trade rules.

The news brought some respite with a second day of rises looking likely following heavy selling on Tuesday when the STOXX 600 fell over 2% as bond yields soared by the most in decades.

The ECB is expected to deliver another rate cut on Thursday and market participants are also sifting through a raft of corporate earnings.

Zalando ZALG.DE is out with higher expected profits in 2025, and Air France-KLM AIRF.PA reported better-than-expected annual result for 2024.

Belgian chemicals maker Solvay SOLB.BR forecast stable annual core profit while Lufthansa LHAG.DE reported a decline in full-year operating profit in line with expectations on Thursday.

DHL DHLn.DE unveiled plans to lay off about 8,000 jobs this year as part of a strategy to save more than 1 billion euros ($1.08 billion) by 2027, after the German logistics giant reported a 7.2% fall in annual operating profit.

(Lucy Raitano)

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