European markets set to fall at the open after a choppy start to the year

European markets were on track to pull back when trading begins Friday amid a rocky start to 2025 for stocks around the world.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 was set to dip by around eight points to 8,243, Germany's DAX was on track to fall by five points to 19,988 and the French CAC 40 was on course to shed 21 points to 7,369. Italy's FTSE MIB was last set to fall around 107 points to 34,430.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 had closed higher on Thursday after a volatile first trading session of the year.

Investors weighed regional and global political uncertainty that could affect markets and the economy, including political instability in France, upcoming elections in Germany and potential tariffs under U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.

On the data front in Europe on Friday, investors will be watching out for the latest inflation figures from Turkey and Poland, as well as unemployment reports out of Germany and Spain and mortgage data from the U.K.