By JOE McDONAL

BEIJING (AP) — Global stocks and Wall Street futures rose Wednesday as investors waited for U.S. inflation data for signs of how fast the Federal Reserve might pull back stimulus.

London and Frankfurt opened higher. Shanghai, Tokyo and Hong Kong advanced.

U.S. inflation data Thursday are expected to show inflation rose to a four-decade high of 7.3% in January, adding to pressure to control prices. Traders expect the Fed to hike rates at least four times this year, starting next month.

Wall Street’s rebound “suggests an attempt by the equity bulls to regain some control,” Yeap Jun Rong of IG said in a report. “Much will depend on the upcoming U.S. inflation data to ease some concerns about tightening ahead.”

In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London rose 0.6% to 7,612.25 and the DAX in Frankfurt added 0.7% to 15,359.40. The CAC 40 in Paris advanced 0.9% to 7,095.45.

On Wall Street, the future for the benchmark S&P 500 index was up 0.3%. That for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.2% higher.

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 rose 0.8% and the Dow gained 1.1%. The Nasdaq composite advanced 1.3%.

Smaller company stocks outpaced the broader market in a potential sign that investors are optimistic about economic growth. The Russell 2000 index of smaller stocks rose 1.6%.