European Stocks Seen Ticking Higher

(RTTNews) - European stocks are seen opening higher on Tuesday, although gains will likely remain muted ahead of the Christmas break. The stock market will remain closed in Frankfurt, while London's market will close at 1230 GMT.

The Asian markets are broadly higher on optimism about the U.S. economy and as China's central bank injected cash into the banking system through seven-day reverse repos to avoid deeper turmoil amid rising interest rates. On Friday, the central bank had provided more than 300 billion yuan in short-term funds to selected banks.

In economic releases, U.K. mortgage approvals data for November and U.S. reports on durable goods orders and new home sales are slated for release later in the day. The U.S. markets will have an abbreviated session before the Christmas holiday on Wednesday.

In corporate news, global mining giant Rio Tinto said it is considering selling its 19.1 percent stake in a proposed copper and gold mine in Alaska that has been opposed by the local community and several of Rio Tinto's shareholders.

The European markets finished notably higher on Monday, as signs that the U.S. economy is gaining traction and the IMF's prediction that the U.S. economy will grow at a faster pace than previously expected next year helped investors shrug off recent concerns over a credit crunch in China. The German DAX rose 0.9 percent, France's CAC 40 gained half a percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 index added 1.1 percent.

U.S. stocks rose overnight after Apple reached a deal with China Mobile and a report from the Commerce Department showed U.S. consumer spending outpaced income growth in November. A key measure of core inflation remained tame below the Fed's 2 percent target. The Dow and the S&P 500 rose about half a percent each to fresh record highs, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq advanced 1.1 percent to reach its best level since 2000.