A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from

Ankur Banerjee

A pinch of caution ahead of a U.S. inflation reading, a bit of

exuberance in tech stocks following a comeback from Nvidia ( NVDA ) and a

dash of hawkish rhetoric from Fed officials - and voila! You get

a listless market searching for direction.

Traders appear to be reticent in making major moves ahead of

Friday's always crucial release of the U.S. personal consumption

expenditures price index - the Federal Reserve's preferred

measure of inflation. Economists polled by Reuters expect annual

growth to ease to 2.6% in May, the slowest in over three years.

Until then, market participants are taking cues from

Fedspeak and so far policymakers are preaching patience,

underscoring that the Fed is in no hurry to cut interest rates

and putting a lid on any rate-cut excitement.

Markets are pricing in just about two rate cuts this year

with a cut in September priced in at around 67%, the CME

FedWatch tool showed.

Futures indicate European bourses are set for a higher

opening, likely buoyed by a rally in tech stocks after Nvidia ( NVDA )

surged more than 6%, snapping a three-session slide

that erased about $430 billion from its market value.

With the economic calendar bare, markets may drift with

quarter-end caution capping significant moves. Focus will also

be on the euro as France gears up to vote this

weekend.

Over in Asia, tech shares rose, with Taiwan stocks

up 0.24% while the Nikkei surged 1.45% to its highest

since early April, though gains were not enough to keep broader

markets in positive territory.

The yen vigil continued as the Japanese unit lurked just

below 160 per dollar - a level that traders suspect could lead

to another round of intervention after Tokyo spent some 9.8

trillion yen in late April and early May to support the

currency.

In corporate news, focus will be on Deliveroo ( DROOF ) shares

after Reuters reported that U.S. meal delivery group Doordash ( DASH )

flagged an interest in a takeover of its British peer

last month.

Key developments that could influence markets on Wednesday:

Economic events: French consumer confidence for June,

Swedish PPI data for May