US debt ceiling causes uncertainties for investors

European stocks opened steady on Thursday, with indices trading in tight ranges due to the pending battle over the US debt ceiling that causes uncertainties […]


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European stocks opened steady on Thursday, with indices trading in tight ranges due to the pending battle over the US debt ceiling that causes uncertainties for investors.

At 8.05am GMT, Future contracts for UK FTSE were up 6 points, trading around the 6562 level. While contracts for Germany’s Dax were up around 21 points, at 8683.

Moving on to the US, Before the 1st of October, the US congress will need to pass stop-gap funding for federal agencies, and by October 17 if no deal will be reached regarding a debt ceiling, there may be fears of a default.

In equities, Nokia has internal discussions whether to approach its French rival Alcatel Lucent about a tie-up.

In terms of economic data, the important figures to look out for today are as follows:

- at 9:30 am we are expecting UK Current accounts, an indicator that measures the difference between imported and exported goods and services. The forecast is at -11.2B which is a slight improvement from last month.

- Then at 1:30pm we have the US unemployment claims with a forecast of 319K.

- And lastly at 3pm we have the US Pending home sales m/m.

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