European Shares Set to Fall, Focus on Financials

European shares are poised to fall in early trade on Friday, as rising oil prices continue to fuel inflation worries, while financial stocks remain under pressure after U.S. insurer giant AIG
posted a $7.8 billion quarterly loss, hit by bad credit-related investments.

Adding to the gloom, Citigroup could announce as much as $400 billion of "non-core" assets are up for sale when it meets with investors and analysts later in the day, a person familiar with the situation said.

Financial bookmakers, or spread betters, in London expected Britain's FTSE 100 index to open between 26 and 29 points lower, the German DAX down 31 to 59 points, and the French CAC 40 down 27 to 48 points.

U.S. crude oil futures hit a record high of $124.70 per barrel on Friday as a surge in heating oil futures triggered active buying by investment funds.

European shares ended slightly lower on Thursday, weighed down by financials after both the Bank of England and the European Central Bank kept interest rates on hold as expected and investors saw little to suggest euro-zone borrowing costs would fall soon.

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