Investing.com - European stock markets rose Wednesday, ahead of the release of highly influential US monthly inflation data, after UK consumer prices showed signs of cooling.At 03:05 ET (08:05 GMT), the DAX index in Germany climbed 0.3%, the CAC 40 in France gained 0.3% and the FTSE 100 in the UK surged 0.7%.US inflation data looms large Investors are tentatively awaiting the release of the latest US consumer price data, later in the session, as this could potentially shift expectations of future monetary policy from the Federal Reserve.Markets have already pushed out expectations for the next Fed rate cut to June after the unexpectedly strong jobs report earlier this month.Economists are expecting the December CPI to show a 2.9% year-over-year increase, an increase of 0.4% on a monthly basis, while the core measure, which excludes volatile food and energy components, is expected to rise 0.3% monthly, a 3.3% annual gain.While the Fed was confident that inflation had moderated enough to start cutting interest rates in September, the pace of annual inflation has remained above the Fed's 2% target.US producer price data for December was surprisingly tame on Tuesday, with the core measure flat in the month.Back in Europe, British inflation unexpectedly slowed to an annual rate of 2.5% in December from 2.6% in November, while core measures of inflation fell more sharply.The Bank of England announces its next interest rate decision on Feb. 6, and this cooling of inflation could persuade the policy makers to cut interest rates again, especially after UK government debt yields recently soared to 16-year highs amid worries about Britain's fiscal health under the leadership of Chancellor Rachel Reeves.