European Shares Seen Flat to Higher as Investors Await ECB Decision, Fed Holds Rates

European stocks are seen opening flat to slightly higher on Thursday as investors await the European Central Bank's policy meeting and weigh the Federal Reserve's decision to hold rates at 3.75-4 percent. The ECB is widely expected to hold rates steady, but investors will look for signals on the policy path amid bond-market turmoil in France. France's CAC 40 finished marginally lower Wednesday, while the STOXX 600 ended flat and the DAX rose 0.4 percent. In the U.S., Alphabet shares slumped more than 10 percent in after-hours trading after third-quarter search and advertising revenue missed estimates, while Microsoft jumped over 5 percent on stronger-than-expected fiscal 2027 first-quarter results. Samsung Electronics fell nearly 5 percent in South Korea. The 10-year Treasury yield remained above 5 percent, gold held below $4,050 an ounce, and Brent crude fell more than 1 percent below $114 a barrel on fresh diplomatic efforts to end the Middle East war.