European stocks ended mixed on the last trading day of the year. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed a shortened trading session 0.1% lower on Wednesday, with most sector indexes in negative territory. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 ended the day down 0.2%, bringing the index to an annual gain of 21.5% – its strongest yearly gain since 2009. Meanwhile, France's CAC 40 ended New Year's Eve down 0.2%, while Germany's DAX rose 0.6%. Italy's FTSE MIB gained 1.1%, bringing annual gains to 31.5% and its best year since 1998. Markets were open for a half-day of trading on Wednesday, and will be closed...
Asia-Pacific markets opened mixed on Wednesday, following losses on Wall Street that sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average down for a ninth straight day. Investors in Asia were assessing trade data from Japan ahead of the Bank of Japan's interest rate decision later this week. The country's exports grew 3.8% in November year-on-year, beating economists polled by Reuters' forecasts for a 2.8% increase. Imports, meanwhile, fell 3.8%, well below expectations for a 1% expansion. The figures put Japan's trade balance in deficit at 117.6 billion yen ($765.2 million), higher than expectations...
Japan's Nikkei 225 Index fell for a fourth day on Wednesday as investors remained cautious ahead of monetary policy decisions by the Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan. A decline in U.S. semiconductor stocks also dragged on the market. The Nikkei index was down 0.2 percent at 39,275.88 as of 9:07 a.m. in Tokyo The Topix index was little changed at 2,726.90 Of the 2,126 stocks in the index, 819 rose and 1,132 fell, while 175 were unchanged If the market starts to reduce expectations for a Fed rate cut next year, it's hard to predict how U.S. stocks will react, weighing on Japanese...
US stock index futures fell, causing a rally in leading technology stocks to pause, as investors await a raft of economic data and the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision. Futures on the S&P 500 were down 0.3% at 5:42 a.m. in New York, while tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures were little changed after the index posted back-to-back records. CNH Industrial shares edged up in premarket trading after the machine-tool company was upgraded to overweight from equal-weight at Morgan Stanley, which forecast that 2025 will provide clarity on the major equipment cycle. The US stock rally...
The Hang Seng lost 95 points or 0.5% to finish at 19,700 on Tuesday, down for the third session amid a steep decline in US futures following a record close on Wall Street Nasdaq, ahead of an anticipated interest rate reduction from the Fed Wednesday. The index hits its lowest level in over a week, weighed by the third straight session of losses in Chinese markets and vigilance before the PBoC's monthly review of key lending rates later this week, after record low levels in November. Further declines were limited by a report from Reuters that China plans a record top budget deficit of 4% in...
European markets opened in negative territory on Tuesday as central banks took center stage this week. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index opened 0.4% lower with all sectors in negative territory, as did all major European bourses. The focus of global markets this week is the U.S. Federal Reserve's final two-day policy meeting of the year. The meeting begins on Tuesday, with the central bank's monetary policy decision due on Dec. 18. Traders are pricing in a 95% chance of a quarter-point rate cut on Wednesday, according to CME Group's Fed Watch tool. Investors will also be looking for...