Dec 22 (Reuters) - Spain's Ibex-35 stock index opened minimally higher on Friday as investors found little reason to change their positions ahead of the release of a key U.S. price indicator.

The core inflation figure from the private consumption report (also known as PCE) has kept investors on hold all week, as it could confirm hopes for early interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve (Fed), which led to a strong rally in November and part of December.

According to a Reuters poll of analysts, the underlying PCE index could slow from 3.5% to 3.3% y-o-y in November.

Adding to the uncertainties in monetary matters was the increased geopolitical risk from the Houthi attacks on trade in the Red Sea -- which are boosting the price of crude oil -- the notable slowdown in the British and German economies and the slump in Asian markets due to Chinese restrictions on gambling and internet companies.

"As we approach the close of the year, global financial markets face an amalgam of challenges and tensions, highlighting the complexity and interconnectedness of the events shaping the global economic landscape," said Sergio Avila, market analyst at IG.

Against this backdrop, at 08:13 GMT on Friday, Spain's selective Ibex-35 stock market index was up 12.50 points, or 0.13%, to 10,117.10 points, while the FTSE Eurofirst 300 index of large European stocks was down 0.13%.

With four business sessions left to close the year, including Friday, the Spanish selective index accumulates a 22.93% rebound, which would be the biggest advance since 2009.

In terms of individual stocks, in the banking sector, Santander rose 0.24%, BBVA gained 0.24%, Caixabank gave up 0.05%, Sabadell gained 0.40%, Bankinter dropped 0.27% and Unicaja Banco rose 0.22%.

Among the large non-financial stocks, Telefónica gained 0.50%, Inditex gave up 0.54%, Iberdrola gained 0.30%, Cellnex gained 0.34%, and the oil company Repsol rose 0.73%.

(Information by Tomás Cobos)