US stocks were higher on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 rising 0.3%, the Nasdaq edging up 0.1%, and the Dow Jones jumping more than 250 points. The gains followed fresh record closes for the S&P 500 in back-to-back sessions. Investor sentiment was buoyed by renewed trade optimism after President Trump announced a deal with Japan that would lower tariffs from 25% to 15%. Japan also committed to investing $550 billion in the US and opening its markets to key American goods. Additionally, a trade agreement with the Philippines was announced, while hopes are growing that a deal with the EU...
U.S. stocks closed down on Tuesday after a batch of upbeat economic data raised concerns that an inflation rebound could slow down the Federal Reserve's pace of monetary policy easing. Stocks gave up early gains after a Labor Department report showed job openings unexpectedly increased in November, while a separate report said services sector activity accelerated in December with a measure tracking input prices surging to a near two-year high. Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields hit an eight-month high at 4.677% after the data pointed to a strong economy. Signs of continued resilience in...
European markets closed higher on Tuesday as investors in the region digested inflation data and corporate earnings releases. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index provisionally ended the session up 0.34%, with mining, utilities and construction stocks among the few sectors in negative territory. Major bourses were in mixed territory, with the FTSE 100 down by around 0.09%. Annual inflation in the euro zone rose to 2.4% in December, a flash estimate from Eurostat showed on Tuesday, up from 2.2% in November. The print — which was in line with expectations, according to a Reuters poll of...
Most US stocks rose on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 up 0.4%, extending gains for a third session, the Dow Jones up nearly 130 points and the Nasdaq trading around the flatline. All sectors were in the green but energy and real estate outperformed. In the corporate sector, Nvidia shares rose 1.6%, following the CEO's announcement of new chips, software and services. On the other hand, Tesla fell nearly 0.7% after Bank of America downgraded the stock. Meanwhile, traders awaited the JOLTS report for additional insight into the performance of the labor market while continuing to evaluate...
European stocks fell on Tuesday, retreating after strong gains in the last session, as a decline in healthcare and financial stocks weighed while investors focused on key inflation data across the continent due later in the day. Europe's main index, the STOXX 600, was down 0.3% by 0810 GMT after rising to a more than two-week high on Monday following a report suggesting U.S. President-elect Donald Trump may opt for a less aggressive tariff strategy. Trump later denied the report, adding to the uncertainty. On the day, healthcare was among the biggest early losers, down 0.8% with index...
The Hang Seng tumbled 241 points or 1.2% to close at 19,448 on Tuesday, marking its second day of losses and nearing its lowest since the end of November. Declines were widespread across sectors, with the tech index down near 1% amid a steep 7.5% plunge in Tencent Hlds. after the US added the tech giant and battery maker CATL to a list of firms allegedly aiding China's military. Tencent issued a statement claiming its inclusion on the list was a clear mistake and that the listing would have no impact on its business. Meanwhile, CATL asserted that it does not engage in any military-related...