European markets set to open lower as geopolitical tensions rise after Poland missile incident

Holly Ellyatt

European markets are set to open lower on Wednesday as political instability gripped the region after a missile hit Polish territory, raising tensions between Russia and NATO.

Ukraine experienced a wave of missile strikes across the country on Wednesday and in the evening Poland said a Russian-made missile had struck Polish territory, killing two people. Moscow denied responsibility for the strike. President Andrzej Duda described it as “an isolated incident,” adding an investigation is underway.

Shares in the Asia-Pacific were mostly lower on Wednesday as world leaders gathered in Bali, Indonesia, for a second day of the Group of 20 summit. U.S. stock futures fell in overnight trading as investors weighed another lighter-than-expected inflation report and looked ahead to U.S. retail sales data due out Wednesday.

Biden says it’s ‘unlikely’ the missile that killed two people in Poland was fired from Russia

U.S. President Joe Biden said it’s “unlikely” a missile that killed two people in Poland was fired from Russia, citing the trajectory of the rocket.

Asked by a reporter if the missile was fired from Russia, Biden said: “There is preliminary information that contests that, I don’t want to say that until we completely investigate.”

He went on to say: “It’s unlikely… in the minds of the trajectory, that it was fired from Russia. But, we’ll see.”

Biden reiterated that the leaders of the Group of 7 agreed to support an ongoing investigation into the explosion.

“We agreed to support Poland’s investigation into the explosion in rural Poland near the Ukrainian border. And I’m going to make sure we figure out exactly what happened,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Bali, Indonesia.

–Jihye Lee

World Bank says Russia is ‘wrecking their own future’ through Ukraine war

World Bank President David Malpass said Russia is hurting its own future by continuing a war on Ukraine.

“It weakens Russia, it makes them outcasts and it really is wrecking their own future,” he said. “I’m hurt by what Russia is doing to itself, to its own people.”

When asked about the latest developments of a Russian-made missile killing Polish citizens, Malpass said: “I don’t want to speculate about the missiles, but as far as the G-20 [goes], there’s been unity, broad unity of G-20 countries against war.”

–Jihye Lee

CNBC Pro: Analysts think these EV-related stocks in the lithium supply chain could be winners

Goldman Sachs says the peak in battery metal prices is approaching.

Given this outlook, CNBC Pro screened the Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF

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These stocks are expected to post full-year growth in 2023, are buy rated by the majority of analysts covering them, and have average potential upside of at least 20% over the next 12 months.

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CNBC Pro: These biotech stocks look cheap — and analysts give 2 more than 100% upside

Fundstrat said some biotechnology stocks are worth following and that the sub-sector is currently the strongest within the health industry.

Mark Newton, head of technical strategy at research firm Fundstrat, said the sector is “a key part of the reason why Healthcare likely shows strong 4Q [fourth quarter] outperformance,” according to a Nov. 14 note.

To identify biotech stocks that look cheap and are expected to rally looking ahead, CNBC Pro screened the iShares Biotechnology ETF on FactSet. Here are 8:

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CNBC Pro: The Fed ‘pivot’ is dead, says strategist, who shares where to invest right now

Fidelity says the notion that a pivot from the Federal Reserve’s hawkish stance will benefit equities is “dead.”

Salman Ahmed, global head of macro and strategic asset allocation at the investment management firm, said he is concerned about short-term stock performance and suggests investor consider a different asset class instead.

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European markets: Here are the opening calls

European markets are set to open lower on Wednesday as political instability gripped the region after a missile hit Polish territory Wednesday, ratcheting up tensions between Russia and NATO.

The U.K.’s FTSE index is expected to open 31 points lower at 7,328, Germany’s DAX down 121 points at 14,237, France’s CAC down 48 points at 6,580 and Italy’s FTSE MIB down 205 points at 24,405, according to data from IG.

Global markets will be watching developments in Ukraine following a massive missile strike across the country on Wednesday, and the fallout from the missile hitting Polish territory, although Moscow denies responsibility for the strike.

Earnings set to be released are from Alstom, Siemens Energy, Premier Foods, SSE, Experian and Man Utd and data releases include the latest U.K. inflation numbers for October.

— Holly Ellyatt

Source : CNBC