European stocks close out best month since January as inflation eases

Here's how the major indexes opened on Thursday:

• The S&P 500 gained about 0.1%.
• The Dow Jones Industrials Average added 180 points, or nearly 0.5%.
• The Nasdaq Composite jumped 0.1%.

— Pia Singh

New York Federal Reserve President John Williams said Thursday he expects the central bank will have to hold interest rates at a "restrictive" level to get inflation back to target.

"I expect it will be appropriate to maintain a restrictive stance for quite some time to fully restore balance and to bring inflation back to our 2 percent longer-run goal on a sustained basis," Williams said in prepared remarks.

However, he also said he thinks the Fed is "at, or near, the peak level" of where it needs to set the fed funds rate, the central bank's benchmark for short-term lending. Williams added that he expects inflation to recede to about 2.25% in 2024 before it gets back to target the following year.

—Jeff Cox

The euro traded lower against the British pound and the U.S. dollar after euro zone inflation came in at 2.4%, below the 2.7% level predicted by economists polled by Reuters.

The euro was 0.55% down against the greenback at $1.091 at 11:35 a.m. London time, and it stood 0.06% below sterling at 0.863, as investors assessed what the figures mean for potential interest rate cuts from the European Central Bank next year.

Joe Tuckey, head of FX analysis at Argentex Group, said that the most recent central bank forecasts for average inflation of 3.2% in 2024 and 2.1% in 2025 may not be too high, and that the latest reading provides a "challenging landscape for any remaining ECB hawks."

Fresh outlook are due at the ECB meeting in mid-December.

"Markets are now beginning to price for an April cut, and the price action for EURUSD in the coming weeks will be partially driven by the rate cut timing from the ECB vis-a-vis that of the Federal Reserve," Tuckey said in emailed comments.

— Jenni Reid

The number of people out of work in Germany increased by a seasonally adjusted 22,000 in November, the Labour Office said Thursday, bringing the total to around 2.702 million.

That was in line with expectations from analysts previously surveyed by Reuters.

The jobless rate, also on a seasonally adjusted basis, was at 5.9% in November, up from October's 5.8%.

— Sophie Kiderlin

European markets opened higher on the last day of the month, but sectors were mixed.

Oil and Gas stocks were last up by close to 1%, while chemicals dipped by around 0.4%.

The Stoxx 600 index was up by around 0.14% at 8:15 a.m. London time and hovered just below a 6% increase for the month of November.

— Sophie Kiderlin

French inflation rose by 3.4% on an annual basis in November, the The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies said Thursday.

That marked a slowdown from the previous month's reading of 4%.

Compared with the previous month, inflation declined slightly by 0.2% in November.

Data also showed that the French economy contracted slightly in the third quarter, with the gross domestic product declining by 0.1%.

— Sophie Kiderlin

German retail sales rose by 1.1% in October from the previous month, the federal statistics office said Thursday.

That's far higher than the 0.4% increase previously expected by analysts polled by Reuters.

Non-food items were the key driver behind the elevated sales, while food retail sales weakened.

On an annual basis, retail sales declined slightly by 0.1%.

— Sophie Kiderlin

Three stocks are on the verge of taking off, according to a chart pattern closely watched by technical analysts.

The phenomenon, known as a "golden cross", occurs when a stock's 50-day moving average share price rises above the longer-term 200-day moving average. Wall Street regards the pattern as a bullish sign of a potential rally to come.

It comes at a time when the S&P 500 has rallied by nearly 10%, and charting analysts expect to see the index rally further.

Technical analysis is often used to identify an entry point for stocks. To be sure, the process uses historical data to chart future outcomes, which are not guaranteed.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more the three stocks here.

— Ganesh Rao

Autonomous vehicles – or vehicles embedded with chips and sensors to enable self-driving – have been picking up steam, and several stocks make good plays of the theme, according to Fubon Research.

"Automobiles will drive the next industrial revolution, replicating the development of the smart phone industry. As countries are focused on vehicle safety, they are enforcing the installation of ADAS (Advanced Driving Assistance System)," analysts at the research house wrote in a Nov. 27 note distributed by Jefferies.

Autonomous and power transportation systems such as electric vehicles are expected to grow at an annual compound growth rate (CAGR) of 24% to hit $324 billion in 2030 – making them the industry's "largest growth segments," they analysts added.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more on the stocks to play, here.

— Amala Balakrishner

Depending on whether it will be a higher-for-longer regime or if rates start to come down, investors might be wondering if they should stay invested in cash, or start flocking to bonds.

UK asset management firm Schroders noted that it's now possible to earn 5% on cash deposits in the U.S. and U.K., and between 3% to 4% in Europe. That's quite similar to what investors can get on government bonds, while high-quality corporate bonds yield more at nearly 6.5% in the U.S. and U.K., and 4.6% in Europe.

"But bond prices can go up and down whereas cash doesn't. This has led many investors to wonder: is it worth bothering with bonds?" it said.

Here's what the pros say on how to invest within the fixed income space – cash or bonds - in the next two years and beyond.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Weizhen Tan

European markets are expected to open lower Tuesday.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 43 points lower at 8,381, Germany's DAX down 60 points at 18,708, France's CAC 33 points lower at 8,139 and Italy's FTSE MIB down 140 points at 34,788, according to data from IG.

Earnings come from Kingfisher, Smiths Group, Fresnillo and Generali. Euro zone trade balance and construction data for March are due.

— Holly Ellyatt