- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years prison for French researcher
- 'Innocent' British nerve agent victim caught in global murder plot: inquiry
- Afghan Taliban vow to implement media ban on images of living things
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years, 3 months jail for French researcher
- England ready for Pakistan's spin assault in second Test
- New Zealand's Ravindra excited for India Tests with father in crowd
- India's capital bans fireworks to curb air pollution
- Stocks diverge, oil retreats as China disappoints markets
- FIFA to open 'global dialogue' on transfer system after Diarra ruling
- Trio wins economics Nobel for work on wealth inequality
- Starmer vows to cut red tape as he urges foreign investors to 'back' UK
- Ex-Stasi officer jailed over 1974 Berlin border killing
- 'Not viable': Barcelona turns against surging tourism
- Hezbollah says targeted Israeli naval base after deadly drone strike
- Rice praises 'unbelievable' England interim boss Carsley despite uncertainty
- Nepali teenager hailed as hero after climbing world's 8,000m peaks
- England captain Stokes back from injury for second Pakistan Test
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as markets rally
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as Asian markets rally
- South Korea military says 'fully ready' as drone flights anger North
- Pakistan 'vigilantes' behind rise in online blasphemy cases
- Nearly 90, but opera legend Kabaivanska is still calling tune
- Smith experiment as Test opener over, Green out of India series
- With inflation down, ECB eyes faster tempo of rate cuts
- Is life possible on a Jupiter moon? NASA goes to investigate
- Dodgers crush Mets 9-0 in MLB playoff series opener
- South Korea military says 'fully ready' as drone tensions soar
- Cummins back, Marsh and Head out of Pakistan ODI series
- Shanghai stocks swing after stimulus briefing as most of Asia rises
- New Zealand's Latham promises 'no fear' as he takes charge for India Tests
- Kyrgios vows to 'shut up' doubters with December comeback
- Public hearings start into death of Brit by Russian nerve agent
- Ex-Stasi officer faces verdict over 1974 Berlin border killing
- Role of government, poverty research tipped for economics Nobel
- 'Stolen satire' feeds US election misinformation
- Rookie McCarty captures first PGA Tour title in Black Desert Championship
- Australia all-rounder Green ruled out of India Test series
- Seeing double in Nigeria's 'twins capital of the world'
- UK FM to attend EU foreign affairs talks for first time in 2 years
- Carter, Billups among 13 new Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
- Ravens rip Commanders as Lions lose NFL sacks leader in win
- Hezbollah drone strike kills four, wounds dozens at Israeli base
- China says launches military drills around Taiwan
- Stewart leads Liberty past Lynx to level WNBA Finals
- England return to winning ways in Nations League, Austria thrash Norway
- UN chief says attacks on UNIFIL 'may constitute a war crime'
- Ravens outlast Commanders while Bucs batter Saints in NFL
- Dozens hurt in Israel as Hezbollah claims drone strike
- England deserve 'world class' coach: Carsley
- Burkina Faso win to become first qualifiers for 2025 AFCON
European stock markets climb as bets build on rate cuts
Europe's main stock markets mostly climbed Wednesday as traders ramped up bets on the US Federal Reserve cutting interest rates in the new year after a top official sounded an optimistic note on the battle against inflation.
Asia's leading indices closed lower after a tepid performance Tuesday on Wall Street, with focus on the release of the US central bank's favoured gauge of prices due Thursday.
The dollar, which has been under pressure over the prospect of rate cuts, firmed against main rivals Wednesday.
"Comments from a usually hawkish Fed policymaker that there could be room for cuts to interest rates... look set to push Wall Street higher at the open," noted Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Oil prices extended gains before an output meeting of OPEC and its allies, notably Russia, on Thursday.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development trimmed its forecast for global growth this year to 2.9 percent.
The OECD, which warned on growth risks stemming from the Israel-Hamas conflict, added that it expects global output to slow next year to 2.7 percent.
Multiple interest rate hikes over the past two years aimed at cooling decades-high inflation have weighed heavily on the economy.
Markets are now eyeing cuts to borrowing costs amid less rampant price increases, with billionaire investor Bill Ackman, founder of Pershing Square Capital Management, believing there could a US rate-reduction as early as the first quarter of next year.
His comments came as Fed Governor Christopher Waller, usually one of the more hawkish members, struck an upbeat tone in a speech Tuesday.
"I am increasingly confident that policy is currently well positioned to slow the economy and get inflation back to two percent," he told the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, referring to the bank's target.
"I am encouraged by what we have learned in the past few weeks -- something appears to be giving, and it's the pace of the economy."
A string of indicators in recent weeks has suggested the US jobs market is softening and the economy slowing down -- but not quickly enough to cause much concern about a recession.
That has encouraged investors to shift back into risk assets, though the latest advance has been tempered by profit-taking ahead of what many hope will be a "Santa rally".
- Key figures around 1115 GMT -
London - FTSE 100: FLAT at 7,453.20 points
Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.5 percent at 7,285.02
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.9 percent at 16,135.56
EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.6 percent at 4,372.78
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.3 percent at 33,321.22 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 2.1 percent at 16,993.44 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.6 percent at 3,021.69 (close)
New York - Dow: UP 0.2 percent at 35,416.98 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0976 from $1.0994 on Tuesday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2684 from $1.2698
Dollar/yen: UP at 147.70 yen from 147.50 yen
Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.54 pence from 86.56 pence
West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.3 percent at $77.42 per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.1 percent at $82.54 per barrel
O.Johnson--AMWN