Global Stock Markets Mostly Rise After S&P 500, Nasdaq Hit Record Highs
By Dow Jones Newswires StaffGlobal stock markets and U.S. stock futures were mostly in the green again on Thursday after Oracle's surge and an unexpected decline in producer prices powered the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite to fresh record closing highs in the prior session. Tech-sector gains and the near-certainty of a rate cut by the Federal Reserve next Wednesday have powered markets higher, with investors now awaiting consumer price data later to provide clues to the pace of rate cuts through end-year. The dollar edged higher, as did Treasury yields.In Europe, the European Central Bank is expected to leave rates unchanged and provide little steer on its policy outlook.U.S. futures for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq were recently up 0.1%, while those for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were flat. Oracle's shares surged 36% on Wednesday after the company said it won several billion-dollar AI deals in its latest quarter, boosting the S&P to its 23rd record close this year.Asian shares closed mostly higher, supported by technology stocks after Oracle's contract wins. Chinese AI hardware stocks regained momentum with AI chip designer Cambricon Technologies, viewed as a potential future challenger to Nvidia, gaining as much as 13% in Shanghai, while Chinese contract chip maker SMIC climbed by up to 8.6%. Japan's Nikkei closed 1.2% higher at a new record; SoftBank Group closed at a record high, gaining 10%. South Korea's Kospi was up 0.9%.Early in Europe, the pan-regional Stoxx Europe 600 climbed 0.2% with a narrowly-mixed picture across national markets. Europe's oil-sector stocks were up despite Brent crude oil trading down slightly; the U.K.'s BP led the gainers, rising 1.4%, while Shell moved up 0.9%. The FTSE 100 added 0.5%.The dollar was up modestly against a basket of currencies ahead of data that are expected to show U.S. inflation accelerated in August. Economists in a WSJ survey expect inflation to rise to an annual rate of 2.9% in August from 2.7% in July. There is a risk that inflation is higher than expected and much still suggests that the Federal Reserve will deliver a 25 basis-point interest-rate cut next week, not a larger 50 basis-point reduction, Commerzbank's Michael Pfister said in a note. The euro was flat at $1.1693 ahead of the ECB, while the DXY dollar index was last up 0.1% to 97.895.Bitcoin rose to a two-and-half-week high of $114,452, according to LSEG data.U.S. Treasury yields traded higher late in Asian trade, with the 10-year Treasury yield up 2.1 basis points at 4.052%, according to Tradeweb.In commodities, gold prices slipped but remained above $3,600 a troy ounce. Oil prices were broadly steady after a three-day rally triggered by mounting geopolitical tensions in Europe and the Middle East. Copper fell in the Asian session, with the three-month LME contract shedding 0.2% to $9,991.50/ton earlier after it hit $10,013/ton in the previous session.Write to Barcelona Editors at [email protected]