LIVE MARKETS-Before the bell: Europe steady, eyes on bond yields

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BEFORE THE BELL: EUROPE STEADY, EYES ON BOND YIELDS

European equity futures are hovering around the unchanged mark before the open on Friday, with attention remaining on rising long-end bond yields across the globe.

Euro STOXX 50 futures STXEc1 are little changed. The index has fallen 0.06% so far this week, after gaining for the previous five straight weeks.

Futures on the DAX FDXc1 and CAC FCEc1 are down 0.1%, while FTSE futures FFIc1 are up 0.1%.

Worries about fiscal sustainability are on the minds of investors, who are now closely watching moves in longer-dated debt. The U.S. 30-year yield US30YT=RR has fallen slightly on Friday, but is still holding above 5% after hitting a 19-month high the day before.

Corporate news is relatively light although attention remains on the Italian banking sector and possible M&A.

UniCredit CRDI.MI on Friday said it would fight conditions imposed by the government to clear its offer for Banco BPM BAMI.MI by filing an appeal to the administrative court of Rome's Lazio region.

(Samuel Indyk)

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