It is only logical that a day after the S&P500 surged, hitting Goldman’s 2016 target of 2,100 more than a year early because the US manufacturing sector entered into a recession, that Europe would follow and when Eurostat reported an hour ago that European headline inflation of 0.1% missed expectations of a modest 0.2% increase (core rising 0.9% vs Exp. 1.1%), European stocks predictably surged not on any improvement to fundamentals of course, but simply because the EURUSD stumbled once more, sliding by 40 pips to a session low below the 1.06 level.

In other words, just because the ECB is failing in its mandate to spur inflation, stocks are surging because the ECB is about to unleash even more of the same “medicine” that does nothing for the economy but at least boosts risk assets.

As a result, while US equity futures remain relatively flat (the US ramp takes places just after the 9:30am open), Europe is outperforming the rest of the world thanks to the ECB’s failure to satisfy its mandate:

Elsewhere, global stocks are little changed before Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen delivers a speech to The Economic Club of Washington, in her first of two speeches in 48 hours. On Thursday she testifiesbefore Congress’ Joint Economic Committee. It’s expected she’ll signal a December interest rate hike is likely, while stressing the pace of increases thereafter will be gradual. U.S. data on Wednesday showed manufacturing activity unexpectedly contracted in November, throwing up questions about the durability of the world’s largest economy. There’s a 72 percent chance the Fed will raise rates in two weeks, according to Bloomberg data.

As a result of yesterday’s recessionary manufacturing PMI, the bond market reverted back to the QE trade, if only on the long end and the spread between 10-year notes has narrowed to the least in 10 months. Two-year securities are yielding their highest in over five years, rising 30 basis points since the last Fed meeting on Oct.28.

Not all Fed officials are talking up the prospects of action this month. On Tuesday Chicago Fed President Charles Evans – known as a dovish Fed policymaker – admitted “to some nervousness” about the upcoming decision. He thinks it may be appropriate for the Fed funds rate to still be under 1 percent at the end of 2016.

The biggest highlights in FX overnight was the Aussie dollar, where a Bloomberg index of the currency has risen to its highest since the beginning of July, prompted by a stronger-than-forecast growth report. GDP rose 0.9 percent in the third quarter from a revised 0.3 percent in the previous three months. Dig beneath the surface and the picture isn’t so rosy, though. The expansion was driven by the fastest gain in exports since 2000. Domestic demand contracted by 0.5 percent, the biggest decline since 2009. Since the third quarter, when the Australian dollar fell by almost 9 percent against its U.S. counterpart, it’s rebounded 4 percent as expectations diminish for a rate cut in the first half of 2016. The central bank kept its benchmark rate unchanged at a record-low 2 percent yesterday.

Also in FX, as noted above the most notable release came in the form of Eurozone CPI (CPI Estimate Y/Y 0.10% vs. Exp. 0.20%), with the below expectation reading further heightening calls for the ECB to act at their meeting tomorrow, and as such seeing further softness go through EUR, with EUR/USD making a break below the 1.0600 handle. This comes after an initial bid in EUR as European participants arrived at their desk on touted profit and short-squeeze related flow, while ATM vol sharply higher ahead of the eagerly awaited ECB meeting tomorrow. EUR/CHF ATM vols also traded sharply higher in early trade as market participant’s position for the upcoming ECB decision and also speculate as to whether the SNB will have to act too.

In commodities, oil continued to slide, dropping for the third day in four as OPEC ministers arrive in Vienna ahead of Friday’s meeting. It’s been over a year since the cartel maintained output to defend market share against higher-cost shale producers. In that time, crude oil has slumped 37 percent. Saudi Arabia’s Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi says his country will consider all issues and listen to the concerns of other group members

Taking a closer look at regional markets, Asia stocks traded mixed with price action relatively subdued ahead of upcoming key risk events . Nikkei 225 (-0.4%) saw a mild pullback amid a lack of catalysts to propel the index firmly above 20,000, while the ASX 200 (-0.2%) was initially led lower by industrials, although recovered from lows following encouraging Australian Q3 GDP figures. Shanghai Comp. (+2.3%) fluctuated between gains and losses led by financials after insurers outperformed following the NDRC easing requirements for corporate bond issuance and encouraged insurers to develop bond default insurance and swaps. On the other hand, gains were capped by weakness in tech names coupled with the sharp losses seen in Shenzhen indices. 10yr JGBs tracked USTs higher, while the BoJ also entered the market to purchase JPY 470b1n worth of government debt. BoJ’s Iwata says the central bank will ease if the Japanese price trend comes under threat by the slowdown in emerging markets. Note, that these comments by Iwata are largely in line with the neutral rhetoric coming out of the BoJ