- Djokovic proves staying power as progresses to Shanghai semi-finals
- Hurricane Milton leaves at least 16 dead as Florida cleans up
- Britain face 'ultimate challenge' in America's Cup duel with New Zealand
- Lebanon calls for 'immediate' ceasefire in Israel-Hezbollah war
- Nihon Hidankyo: Japan's A-bomb survivors awarded Nobel
- Thunberg leads pro-Palestinian, climate protest in Milan
- Boat captain rescued clinging to cooler in Gulf of Mexico after storm Milton
- Tears, warnings after Japan atomic survivors group win Nobel
- 'Unspeakable horror': the attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
- Stock markets diverge before China weekend briefing
- Christian villagers 'trapped' in south Lebanon crossfire
- Sabalenka sets up Gauff showdown in Wuhan semis
- EU questions shopping app Temu over illegal products risk
- Kim Sei-young holds lead with late birdies at LPGA Shanghai
- Toulouse welcome Dupont 'boost' as Olympic star returns to Top 14
- Japanese atomic bomb survivor group Nihon Hidankyo wins Nobel Peace Prize
- Deadly Israeli strike on Beirut likely targeted Hezbollah security chief
- Bangladesh Islamist chief backs crimes against humanity trial for ex-PM
- Everest climber's remains believed found after 100 years
- 20 Pakistan coal miners shot dead in attack
- Clashes on South China Sea, Ukraine dominate Asia summit
- Han Kang's books sell out in South Korea after Nobel win
- Zelensky meets Pope, Scholz as whirlwind Europe tour ends
- Hello Hallyu: why is South Korean culture sweeping the globe?
- UK economy rebounds in August in boost to new govt
- Voice of Japan's beloved robot cat 'Doraemon' dies
- Shanghai markets sink ahead of briefing on mixed day for Asia
- Investors, analysts eye bigger China stimulus at Saturday briefing
- 20 Pakistan coal miners shot dead in attack: police
- Blinken condemns China's 'increasingly dangerous' sea moves
- Toyota returns to Formula One as Haas partner
- EU chief says China must 'adapt its behaviour' to solve trade row
- Musk unveils robotaxi, pledges it 'before 2027'
- Lynx rally, stun Liberty in overtime in WNBA Finals opener
- Pogacar hunting 'perfect' season finale with Coppi's Il Lombardia record
- 'Soul of old Baghdad': city centre sees timid revival
- Kittle at the double as Niners hold off Seahawks
- At least 11 dead in Florida but Hurricane Milton not as bad as feared
- Yankees advance in MLB playoffs as Guardians stay alive
- Asian markets mixed after Wall St drop, Shanghai dips before briefing
- Automaker Stellantis says CEO will retire in 2026
- Musk's promised robotaxi unveil delayed
- Kamada says Japan can close in on World Cup place against Australia
- On US coast, wind power foes embrace 'Save the Whales' argument
- Renewables revolt in Sardinia, Italy's coal-fired island
- Argentina held, Brazil leave it late in 2026 World Cup qualifiers
- Obama blasts 'crazy' Trump in first rally for Harris
- 2024 Nobel Peace Prize, a plea in favour of world order?
- Fry homers as Guardians down Tigers to stay alive in MLB playoffs
- Japan PM presses China's Li on airspace intrusion
Wall Street stocks rise as traders shake off uptick in inflation
Global stock markets rose Tuesday after investors shrugged off a hotter-than-expected US inflation report and dived back into technology stocks.
The annual rise in consumer price index (CPI) came in at 3.2 percent last month, the Labor Department said, while the "core" measure stripping out volatile food and energy prices rose 3.8 percent.
Both were slightly higher than expected, but not enough to deter expectations that rates may start coming down this summer.
On Wall Street, The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 0.6 percent, while the broad-based S&P 500 closed 1.1 percent higher.
The tech-rich Nasdaq shot up more than 1.5 percent -- fueled by companies including Nvidia and Meta, which rose by 7.2 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively.
"The market today breathes a sigh of relief that the threat of inflation is coming down," Adam Sarhan from 50 Park Investments told AFP.
"Inflation has not gone away yet, but the trend has shifted from rampant inflation, and now it's leveling out," he said.
- 'No longer petrified' -
Tuesday's inflation print is likely to keep the US Federal Reserve on hold as the central bank mulls the right time to start lowering its key lending rate from the current 23-year high of between 5.25 to 5.50 percent.
"Investors are no longer petrified about higher inflation," Sarhan said, adding: "They can look to other things like earnings to send stocks up."
The start of the year often sees a blip in inflation, said Chris Beauchamp, an analyst at trading platform IG.
Last year "started off with resurgent inflation and then saw it ease. If 2024 follows a similar pattern then we may still get our June rate cut," he told AFP.
Kathleen Brooks, an analyst at XTB.com, pointed out that Wall Street continued its recent rally after a similarly disappointing CPI report a month ago.
"We don't think that the February number will knock the rally in stocks in the short term," she said, with the stock market's recent health being driven as much by strong corporate results as the interest rate outlook.
"Overall, we expect financial markets to trade with a cautious tone in the coming days leading up to next week's Fed meeting," she added.
- Europe higher -
European shares opened higher and held on to their gains throughout the day, with the main indices closing up around one percent.
London was boosted by official British unemployment and wages data that raised hopes of a cut to UK interest rates in the coming months.
Hong Kong shares continued their recent advances, climbing more than three percent, helped by fresh buying of tech firms.
Electronics giant Xiaomi surged more than 10 percent after saying it would start deliveries of its first electric vehicle by the end of this month.
However, Tokyo fell again as speculation swirls that the Bank of Japan will next week shift away from its ultra-loose monetary policy.
- Key figures around 2130 GMT -
New York - Dow: UP 0.6 percent at 39,005.49 points (close)
New York - S&P 500: UP 1.1 percent at 5,175.27 (close)
New York - Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.9 percent at 16,265.64 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 1.0 percent at 7,747.81 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.8 percent at 8,087.48 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 1.2 percent at 17,965.11 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: UP 1.1 percent at 4,983.20 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.1 percent at 38,797.51 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 3.1 percent at 17,093.50 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.4 percent at 3,055.94 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0930 from $1.0929 on Monday
Dollar/yen: UP at 147.67 yen from 146.96 yen
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2795 from $1.2812
Euro/pound: UP at 85.41 pence from 85.28 pence
Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.4 percent at $81.92 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.5 percent at $77.56 per barrel
burs-gv/RL/da/bjt
O.M.Souza--AMWN