U.S. Congress passed a bill
supporting Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters on Wednesday, placing President Donald Trump in a potential quandary as he tries to strike a trade deal with China. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said Beijing "condemns and firmly opposes" the first bill, according to Reuters. Reuters also reported Wednesday, citing trade experts and sources close to the Trump administration, that completion of a partial deal could be delayed until 2020 as China pursues more comprehensive tariff rollbacks.In corporate news,on Thursday reported a widening full-year net loss for fiscal 2019 and downgraded its 2020 outlook.
On the data front, U.K. public sector financing figures for October are due at 9:30 a.m. London time while November's euro zone consumer confidence flashes will be published at 3:00 p.m. London time.