European shares are called mixed to flat Thursday as investors await the outcome of Spain’s bond auction later.
The FTSE 100 is seen opening higher , the DAX was called flat and the CAC is called lower.
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Investors will watch closely as Spain tenders up to 2.5 billion euros ($3.2 billion) in 2 and 10-year notes at 9:30 London time.
Earlier this week the 10-year yield traded above the crucial 6 percent level raising concerns that the euro zone debt crisis could flare up once again.
The International Monetary Fund said on Monday that member countries had committed $320 billion toward a new financial firewall to contain the euro zone debt crisis.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said that it was important debt-stricken nations within the euro zone avoid too much austerity too soon as that could damage growth and reforms.
Spain wants the European Union to file a complaint against the World Trade Organisation (WTO) against Argentina for its decision to nationalize YPF, the Argentine arm of Spanish oil company Repsol YPF as Argentina announced it would expropriate Repsol’s natural gas company as part of its plans.
Swiss drug maker Roche could be set to abandon its bid for Illumina after it said it would not increase its $6.8 billion offer for the genetic specialist.
Thursday will see a raft of earnings from key international companies including house builer Persimmon and SAB Miller from the UK. Akzo Nobel reported first quarter earnings before EBITDA of 423 million euros ($554.6 million), net profit of 70 million euros.
Investors will be watching Nokia, the Finnish telecom giant, closely as it publishes its first quarter results later Thursday for any signs of a turnaround following falls in market share in the competitive smart phone sector.
In the U.S., Bank of America , Morgan Stanley ,
BlackstoneVerizon will post earnings before the bell while Microsoft Captial One will post their numbers after markets close.
G20 Deputy Finance Ministers meet in Washington later ahead of Friday's G20 Meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors and this week’s IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings.