The upbeat close on Wall Street is anticipated to help European stock markets begin slightly higher as investors wait for the publication of important inflation data.

Stocks in Europe are expected to benefit from the positive sentiment created by the strong Wall Street finish overnight, with the Dow Jones rising 0.9%, on the belief that the approaching June inflation data in the United States would persuade the Fed to cease its interest rate rises as soon as possible.

After halting last month, Fed officials are generally anticipated to raise interest rates at their upcoming meeting later in the month. However, investors are keenly anticipating the publication of the monthly consumer inflation data for hints as to how many rises are still in the pipeline.

Following May's 4% increase, the headline annual number is anticipated to have increased by 3.1% in June, while the core rate is anticipated to have decreased for a third consecutive month, to 5% from 5.3%.

Global markets have been affected this year by worries that aggressive tightening to fight inflation may push the world's largest economy, a key generator of growth, into recession.

The day after German inflation increased by 6.4% on an annual basis in June, breaking a downward trend that had been ongoing since the start of the year, there are additional inflation statistics to consider within Europe.

Spanish CPI is anticipated to increase 1.9% year-over-year in June, which is less than the ECB's 2% objective and suggests the institution might think about terminating its cycle of rate increases.

The eurozone's largest economy is Germany, though, and the ECB's ongoing programme of interest rate hikes still seems to have some distance to go.

Wednesday saw a stabilisation in oil prices as forecasts for increased demand offset growing U.S. crude stocks.

The U.S. EIA forecast that demand would exceed supply by 100,000 barrels per day in 2023 and by 200,000 barrels per day in 2024 when it issued its short-term energy outlook on Tuesday.

Additionally, while the U.S. dollar dropped to two-month lows, helping the oil market, on predictions that the Fed was about to halt its rate-hiking cycle, major oil producers Saudi Arabia and Russia announced fresh supply cutbacks for August.

(Sources: investing.com, reuters.com)