The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) rose 0.17% to 7,333 points at the open, while the CAC 40 (^FCHI) in Paris climbed 0.33% to 6,908 points. In Germany, the DAX (^GDAXI) advanced 0.28% to 14,848.
Meanwhile, Brent crude (BZ=F) was struggling for direction and trading at around $87 (£71.61) per barrel.
In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 (^N225) gained 2.41% to 31,601 points, while the Hang Seng (^HSI) in Hong Kong finished basically flat, slipping 0.06% to 17,101. The Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) barely managed to finish in positive territory, rising 0.14% to 3,023 points.
Across the pond, stocks rallied to close higher on Tuesday as investors weighed fresh consumer confidence data and looked ahead to the Federal Reserve’s upcoming policy decision.
The Dow Jones (^DJI) gained 0.38% to close at 33,052 points. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.65% to finish at 4,193 points and the tech-heavy NASDAQ (^IXIC) climbed 0.48% to 12,851 points.
S&P 500 futures (ES=F), Dow futures (YM=F) and Nasdaq futures (NQ=F) were all in the red as trade began in Europe on Wednesday.
The Federal Reserve will set interest rates later on Wednesday. The Fed is expected to leave interest rates in a range of 5.25% to 5.5%, a level first reached in July, while it assesses whether its existing monetary tightening is enough to bring down inflation.
The rate decision and an accompanying statement by Fed chair Jerome Powell will be released at 6pm, London time.
On Thursday, the Bank of England will announce its rate decision. Threadneedle Street is also expected to hold interest rates at 5.25%.
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House prices rose by 0.9% on average month-on-month in October – likely reflecting a constrained supply of properties for buyers to choose from – according to an index.
Across the UK, property values fell by 3.3% compared with October last year, Nationwide Building Society said.
The average UK house price in October was £259,423.
Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist, said that despite the month-on-month rise in house prices: “Housing market activity has remained extremely weak, with just 43,300 mortgages approved for house purchase in September, around 30% below the monthly average prevailing in 2019.”
Watch: Is the Fed about to spook the markets?
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