- 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
- AC Milan's Pulisic among five out for USA match in Mexico
- France's Amandine Henry retires from international football
- Centre-left set to win pro-Ukraine Lithuania's vote
- India's World Cup hopes in Pakistan hands after Australia defeat
- Zelensky says NKorea sending troops to Russian army
- England beat Finland to get back on track
- King and Lewis propel West Indies to T20 triumph over Sri Lanka
- Pre-Halloween 'Terrifier' lands atop North America box office
- 'I still plan to compete and play next season,' says Djokovic
- Harris, Trump seek advantage in knife-edge election battle
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record in Chicago
- Kamindu and Asalanka power Sri Lanka to 179 against West Indies
- Chepngetich shatters women's marathon world record as Korir wins in Chicago
- Spain send injured Yamal home 'to prioritise player's health'
- In milestone, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Iraq walks fine line with pro-Iran factions to avoid war
- Race four abandoned after New Zealand breeze into 3-0 lead in America's Cup
- West Indies win toss, put Sri Lanka in to bat in first T20
- Sudan rescuers say air strike killed 23 in Khartoum market
- Netanyahu tells UN to move Lebanon peacekeepers out of 'harm's way'
- Bangladeshi Hindus defy attack worries to celebrate festival
- Kiwis three up in America's Cup as Ineos pay for time penalty
- In a first, SpaceX 'catches' megarocket booster after test flight
- Dominant England crush Scotland at Women's T20 World Cup
- Dropped: The rise and fall of Pakistan batting maestro Babar Azam
- Israel fights Hezbollah on the ground, pounds Lebanon from the air
- Sabalenka outlasts local hero Zheng to win third Wuhan Open title
Global stocks rise coyly as ECB, BoE press pause after Fed pivot
Global equities made cautious gains Thursday with Frankfurt and Paris briefly touching all-time peaks as the ECB and Britain pressed pause on rates after the Fed had sent Wall Street soaring on a pivot toward rate cuts next year.
After a torrid series of rate hikes over the past two years to tether runaway inflation, the Bank of England joined the European Central Bank and the Federal Reserve in pausing on interest rates for the second straight meeting.
The Fed's suggestion of monetary easing starting next year sparked a major post-meeting rally Wednesday -- though it soon dissipated on European markets.
Wall Street was also coy Thursday with the Dow and the tech-heavy Nasdaq barely 0.3 percent up two hours into trading.
Frankfurt's DAX index and the Paris CAC 40 vaulted to all-time highs before retreating, with the German index ending the day just into the red while Paris added a meek 0.6 percent after the ECB, while holding fire on rates as expected, warned the inflation battle is not yet won.
ECB president Christine Lagarde warned that policymakers should not "lower our guard" in fighting inflation, dousing market hopes of early drops in interest rates next year.
She added rate cuts had not been discussed because of concern inflation could pick up again in the near term, while the ECB also cut its growth forecasts for this year and next.
London meanwhile ended 1.3 percent higher after the BoE decided to keep its key rate at a 15-year pinnacle of 5.25 percent as UK inflation declines yet remains elevated, indicating monetary policy will likely need to be restrictive for an extended period.
Amid such caveats, "there were no (market) fireworks," noted Craig Erlam, senior market analyst with Oanda, whose over-all conclusion was the central banks "didn't give investors much to get excited about."
For Richard Flax, chief investment officer at Moneyfarm, the ECB "seems to be posturing itself to ‘out-hawk’ the Fed, with Lagarde ruling out rate cuts until data turns conducive... This puts the ECB at odds with current market expectations of meaningful rate cuts in 2024."
Unlike the Fed, "the moment for discussions on cutting rates has not yet arrived," said Juliette Cohen, analyst with CPRAM.
The US Federal Reserve, chaired by Jerome Powell, Wednesday sprang a much-sought-after pivot as inflation comes down in the world's biggest economy.
The greenback retreated against the euro and pound, while oil prices spiked almost four percent to rebound from recent six-month lows.
- 'Monster rally' -
"The Fed lit the touch paper for a monster rally as it greenlit market expectations for rate cuts next year," said Finalto analyst Neil Wilson.
"This was a major pivot. The Fed did not just say it's done; it embraced a much more dovish view."
- US rate-hike cycle 'is over' -
"Investors now want to know when the central bank will start cutting rates and how fast they will come down," said ActivTrades analyst Ricardo Evangelista.
In Asia, the upbeat mood lifted Hong Kong, Sydney and Seoul. But Shanghai dipped on Chinese economic worries and Tokyo dropped on the stronger yen.
- Key figures around 1650 GMT -
New York - Dow: UP 0.3 percent at 37,216.43
London - FTSE 100: UP 1.3 percent at 7,648.98 points (close)
Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.6 percent at 7,575.85 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.1 percent at 16,752.23 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.3 percent at 4,542.29
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.7 percent at 32,686.25 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.1 percent at 16,402.19 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.3 percent at 2,958.99 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0951 from $1.0874 on Wednesday
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 141.54 yen from 142.89 yen
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2766 from $1.2618
Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.14 pence from 86.18 pence
West Texas Intermediate: UP 3.7 percent at $72.04 per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: UP 3.6 percent at $76.89 per barrel
Th.Berger--AMWN