European stock markets were trading mostly lower on Thursday, as a privatization bid by HSBC for its Hong Kong-based subsidiary dragged down the wider banking sector in the region. The pan-European Stoxx 600 declined by 0.4% and the FTSE 100 in the United Kingdom shed 0.3%. HSBC, Europe's biggest lender, said it had put forward a proposal to shareholders that would make the entity, Hang Seng Bank, a "wholly owned subsidiary" of its Asia Pacific arm. Hang Seng, in which HSBC already has a 63% stake, would also be delisted from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the lender added. London-listed...
US stocks pulled back on Thursday as investors paused to digest optimism around AI, interest-rate cuts, and the ongoing government shutdown. The S&P 500 lost 0.3%, the Nasdaq 100 down 0.1%, retreating from record highs reached in the prior session, and the Dow Jones fell 243 points. Market sentiments fell due to the shutdown, which has delayed key economic data, shifting focus to upcoming third-quarter earnings for insights into the economy and the AI-driven rally. Apple, Alphabet, Tesla, and Walmart all lost more than 0.7%, while PepsiCo rose 4.2% after stronger-than-expected revenue...
Asia-Pacific markets mostly weakened on Friday, following Wall Street's decline as investors assessed economic conditions. The Nikkei 225 fell 0.33% and the Topix fell 0.92%; Australia's ASX 200 fell 0.26%. Hang Seng futures signaled a lower open at 26,354 (vs. the previous close of 26,752.59). In Korea, the Kospi closed 0.66% after a holiday, while the Kosdaq fell 0.37%. In the US overnight, the rally paused as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite retreated from intraday records. The general market index fell 0.28% to 6,735.11 and the tech index fell 0.08% to 23,024.63, while the Dow Jones...