European stock markets are expected to open higher before the Fed's minutes. The Eurostoxx 50 opens at 3,647.56 points (-1.64%), the CAC 40 at 6,253.14 points (-1.66%), the DAX 40 at 13,919.75 points (-1.80%), the FTSE 100 at 7,484.35 points (-0.39%), the SMI at 11.483.56 points (+0.15%), the AEX at 679.88 points (-2.04%),  the Nasdaq at 11,264.45 points (-2.35%), the S&P 500 at 3,941.48 points (-0.81%) and the Nikkei 225 at 26,745.72 points (-0.01%).

As regarding exchange rates, the change from the close in New York indicates that EUR/USD is at 1.0710 (-0.24%), EUR/JPY at 136.00 (-0.13%) and USD/JPY at 127.99   (+0.12%).

Investors will follow May household confidence figures on Wednesday. On the corporate side, Derichebourg publishes its results for the first half of the year. The shareholders of TotalEnergies, Renault, Publicis, EssilorLuxottica, STMicroelectronics, Safran, Legrand, Bolloré, Neoen and Albioma are called to a general meeting.

European stock markets are expected to rebound on Wednesday at the opening, but volatility persists in the markets ahead of the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve's (Fed) latest monetary policy meeting. Around 7:40 a.m., the CAC 40 futures contract was up 47 points, or 0.8%, according to data from broker IG Markets. The DAX 40 contract gained 110 points, or 0.8%, and the FTSE 100 contract gained 60 points, or 0.8%. Economists believe that the Fed's minutes, expected at 20:00 (Paris time) will confirm the hypothesis of a further interest rate hike of 50 basis points in June and July, after the one carried out in early May.

Tuesday, Wall Street finished in scattered order, weighed down by Snap's gloomy forecasts that weakened the entire tech sector. Thanks to a surge at the end of the session, the Dow Jones Index (DJIA) closed up 0.2% to 31,928.62 points. But the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indices did not escape the decline due to the plunge of more than 43% in the share of the publisher of Snapchat. The S&P 500 fell 0.8% to 3,941.47 points and the Nasdaq dropped 2.4% to 11,264.45 points. In Asia, markets are generally trading in the green on Wednesday. At the end of the session, the Nikkei index of the Tokyo Stock Exchange was close to balance. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong gained 0.4% and the Shanghai Composite rose 0.8%.

A sustained rise in U.S. Treasury bonds, prompted by lingering concerns about U.S. growth, on Tuesday pushed yields on two- and ten-year stocks down to their lowest levels in more than a month. Investors remain focused on inflation and the Fed's reaction after the release of several unfavorable economic indicators.

The euro retreats Wednesday morning against the dollar, before the release of the Fed minutes. According to MUFG Bank's London team, this report could hold a restrictive surprise for investors if serious discussions have taken place regarding even more rate hikes to curb inflationary pressures. In this case, the dollar could benefit.

Oil contracts are gaining ground Wednesday morning, after press reports that U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm has not ruled out the U.S. banning oil exports in order to control fuel prices. Investors' attention remains focused on the timing of a European Union embargo on Russian oil, after another setback following Hungary's declaration of a state of emergency.

In addition, the American Petroleum Institute (API) announced that U.S. crude inventories increased by 600,000 barrels last week and gasoline reserves decreased by 4.2 million barrels. At 7:25 a.m., the July contract for North Sea Brent was up $1.27, at $114.83 a barrel. The same maturity on light sweet crude (WTI) listed on the Nymex rose by $ 1.22, to $ 110.99 per barrel.