LONDON: Europe’s main stock markets opened higher Wednesday, with investors expecting another jumbo interest rate hike from the US Federal Reserve in a bid to cool red-hot inflation.

London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index rose 0.2 percent to 7,197.89 points, also on the eve of another widely-forecast large rate increase from the Bank of England.

In the eurozone, the Paris CAC 40 added 0.7 percent to 6,374.69 points and Frankfurt’s DAX index won 0.4 percent to 13,385.63.

“Investors are waiting for clues from the Federal Reserve about the path of rate rises, and in the meantime a slightly more wary mood has settled on the markets,” said Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Susannah Streeter.

European shares open higher as oil stocks rise, Fed pivot hopes remain

“The Fed is expected to bring in another super-size rate hike of 0.75 percentage points, but that has been priced in.”

Asian stocks traded mixed Wednesday after losses on Wall Street, as forecast-beating US data jolted hopes the Fed could soon tone down its hawkish pace of rate hikes.