European stocks set to open mixed as global markets look ahead to Fed decision

LONDON -- European stocks are expected to see a mixed start to the new trading week ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's meeting on Wednesday.

The U.K.'s FTSE index is expected to open slightly lower, Germany's DAX 0.17% higher, France's CAC 40 up slightly and Italy's FTSE MIB 0.19% higher, according to data from IG.

On Monday, there are no major European earnings reports, but EU trade data will be published.

It's a busy week for the U.K. as it prepares for U.S. President Donald Trump's state visit. The president and his wife, Melania, arrive on Tuesday evening and will spend Wednesday at Windsor Castle with King Charles and Queen Camilla before holding talks with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday.

The U.K.'s latest inflation print will be released on Wednesday before the Bank of England meets on Thursday, although it is not expected to cut interest rates at this meeting.

Elsewhere, U.S. stock futures were little changed Sunday night after the Nasdaq Composite ended Friday at a fresh record high, with investors bracing for a crucial Federal Reserve meeting this week.

It comes after recent economic data showed a weakening labor market and tame inflation, spurring hopes that the Fed will cut interest rates when it concludes its meeting on Wednesday.

The market was last pricing in a 96.2% certainty that the central bank will lower interest rates by a quarter percentage point, with just a 3.8% likelihood of a steeper half percentage point cut, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed overnight as investors kept an eye on the talks between the U.S. and China in Madrid, Spain on Sunday.

Delegations led by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer met with their counterparts, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and China's top trade negotiator, Li Chenggang, to discuss key national security, economic, and trade issues, including the upcoming deadline to divest Chinese short video app TikTok and U.S. tariffs.