US inflation is central to Tamrock

Stock market trading at TomRock on Thursday will be mainly dominated by US inflation numbers, which will be released later in the day. Investors believe consumer price inflation in the US has weakened further. The US Federal Reserve should raise interest rates very little in the future to control inflation. Inflation was still at 8.3 percent in August and is expected to ease to 8.1 percent in September.

Minutes from the latest US Federal Reserve interest rate meeting, released on Wednesday, showed central bank policymakers were surprised by the pace at which inflation picked up. Central bank officials therefore expect higher interest rates to persist for some time.

The AEX index heads to a lower start on Beursplein 5 and other European bourses also open with losses. Major Asian stock markets were mostly lower on Thursday. In Tokyo, the Nikkei closed down 0.6 percent, while in Hong Kong, the Hong Kong index fell 0.9 percent.

Phillips continues to draw attention at Damrock. The healthcare technology group lost more than 12 percent of its market value a day earlier after a fresh setback on a sleep apnea issue and a profit warning.

Fagron brought the results. The pharmacy supplier reported a 21.5 percent increase in turnover in the third quarter. The company maintained its revenue guidance for the full year.

Real estate fund NSI also released a trading report. The company has raised its profit forecast for this year. Chip supplier RoodMicrotec also opened the books. The company reported a 19 percent increase in its third-quarter total revenue from last year.

European stock markets ended in the red on Wednesday. The AEX lost 0.8 percent to 631.18 points and the MidKap fell 0.8 percent to 856.46 points. Indicators in Paris, London and Frankfurt fell by 0.9 percent. Wall Street fell slightly. The Dow-Jones index was down 0.1 percent at 29,210.85 points. The broader S&P 500 fell 0.3 percent and the tech exchange Nasdaq lost 0.1 percent.

The euro was at $0.9695, down from $0.9707 a day earlier. A barrel of US oil was down $87.26 a share. Brent crude was up 0.1 percent at $92.56 a barrel.