European markets have opened lower today, as investors mulled over statements from several Fed officials which further increased speculation that the US central bank might trim its stimulus programme sooner- than-expected.

Closer home, investors await the Bank of England’s new economic growth forecasts in its quarterly inflation report, due later in the day. Investors also look ahead to the release of UK claimant count rate and ILO unemployment rate data.

Trade Forex, Commodities, Stocks and more, trade CFDs on the Plus 500 CFD trading platform! *CFD Service. 80.6% lose money - Register a real money account here and get trading right away.