European shares were set for a slightly firmer open on Thursday as crude oil rose above $48 a barrel to give energy stocks a boost and the dollar held its own on signals of more U.S. rate hikes from Fed Chief Alan Greenspan.
Tech shares could get a lift from news that Hewlett-Packard Co. posted a slight rise in quarterly profit, fuelled by revenue gains across all of its businesses, and its shares rose more than 2 percent in after-hours trade.
U.S. light crude rose 26 cents to $48.59 a barrel, building on Wednesday's rally of more than 2 percent that took prices to the highest level in three weeks on persistent talks of OPEC output cuts.
Investors were also digesting a slew of results from major companies including Credit Suisse, Zurich Financials, Arcelor and Air France.
MARKET OUTLOOK
* Financial bookmakers in London expect Britain's FTSE 100 to open 4-6 points higher, Germany's Xetra DAX to trade 3-6 points stronger and France's CAC-40 to add 5-6 points.
* European shares snapped a four-session rally on Wednesday after Greenspan hinted at more monetary tightening, with the FTSEurofirst 300 index down 0.6 percent.
* U.S. stocks finished almost flat on Wednesday, as energy companies' shares rose after crude shot above $48, but financial stocks fell after Greenspan cautioned that interest rates could still go higher.
* Tokyo's Nikkei average closed down 0.16 percent as real estate shares and insurers fell, offsetting gains in oil stocks like Nippon Oil Corp.
* Other Asian stock markets such as Kospi , Hang Seng , and Straits Times indexes were also largely unchanged.
* The dollar was supported on the back of the Greenspan comments that U.S. rates were "fairly low".
* Government bond prices lost ground overnight on the signal of more U.S. rate hikes.
* Oil prices added to strong gains, spurred by persistent OPEC talk of a cut in supplies ahead of the second quarter that could drain healthy U.S. stockpiles before summer.
* Gold traded in a tight range in Asia as wary investors watched the dollar. Spot gold was quoted at around $424.50 per ounce.