- US duo win Nobel for gene regulation breakthrough
- Masood hits first ton for four years to power Pakistan to 233-1
- Fritz wins delayed match to reach Shanghai Masters third round
- Naomi Osaka pulls out of Japan Open with back injury
- Weather may delay launch of mission to study deflected asteroid
- China to flesh out economic stimulus plans after bumper rally
- Artist Marina Abramovic hopes first China show offers tech respite
- Asian markets track Wall St rally on US jobs data
- Pakistan 122-1 at lunch in first England Test
- Kazakhs approve plan for first nuclear power plant
- World marks anniversary of Oct. 7 attack on Israel
- 'Second family': tennis stars hunt winning formula with new coaches
- Philippines, South Korea agree to deepen maritime cooperation
- Mexico mayor murdered days after taking office
- Sardinia's sheep farmers battle bluetongue as climate warms
- Japan govt admits doctoring 'untidy' cabinet photo
- Israel marks first anniversary of Hamas's October 7 attack
- Darvish tames Ohtani as Padres thrash Dodgers
- Asian markets track Wall St rally on jobs data
- Family affair as LeBron, Bronny James make Lakers bow
- Cancer, cardiovascular drugs tipped for Nobel as prize week opens
- As Great Salt Lake dries, Utah Republicans pardon Trump climate skepticism
- Amazon activist warns of 'critical situation' ahead of UN forum
- Mourners pay tribute to latest victims of deadly Channel crossing
- Tunisia incumbent Saied set to win presidential vote: exit polls
- Phillies win thriller to level Mets series
- Yu bags first PGA Tour win with playoff win
- PSG held by Nice to leave Monaco clear at top of Ligue 1
- AC Milan fall at Fiorentina after De Gea's penalty heroics
- Lewandowski treble for leaders Barca as Atletico held
- Fresh Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Sucic stunner earns Real Sociedad draw against Atletico
- PSG draw with Nice, fail to reclaim top spot in Ligue 1
- Gudmundsson downs AC Milan after De Gea's penalty heroics for Fiorentina
- 'Yes' vote prevails in Kazakhstan nuclear plant vote: TV
- 'Difficult day': Oct 7 commemorations begin with festival memorial
- Commemorations begin for anniversary of attack on Israel
- Lewandowski hat-trick powers Liga leaders Barca to Alaves victory
- 'Nothing gets in way of team,' says Celtics' MVP hopeful Tatum
- India maintain Pakistan stranglehold as Windies cruise at Women's T20 World Cup
- 'We will win!': Mozambique's ruling party confident at final vote rally
- Tunisia voting ends as Saied eyes re-election with critics behind bars
- Florida braces for Milton, FEMA head slams 'dangerous' Helene misinformation
- Postecoglou slams 'unacceptable' Spurs after 'terrible' loss at Brighton
- Marmoush double denies Bayern outright Bundesliga top spot
- Rallies worldwide call for Gaza, Lebanon ceasefire
- Maresca hails Chelsea's 'fighting' spirit after draw with 10-man Forest
- New 'Joker' film, a dark musical, tops N.America box office
- Man Utd stalemate keeps Ten Hag in danger, Spurs rocked by Brighton
- Drowned by hurricane, remote N.Carolina towns now struggle for water
Stocks extend recovery, yen slides as BOJ reassures on rates
Global stocks recovered further and the Japanese yen slid against the dollar on Wednesday as the Bank of Japan issued a dovish signal it will not hike interest rates further amidst market volatility.
All the major US stock market indexes were showing gains in midday trading, while London, Paris and Frankfurt all closed higher.
Oil prices jumped more than three percent on Middle East tensions and supply constraints in Libya, having fallen at the start of the week as fears of a US recession caused worries about demand.
Investors were sent scurrying after data released on Friday showed that the US economy created far fewer jobs than expected in July, fanning recession fears.
That came soon after the Federal Reserve hinted at a September interest-rate cut and following a hike to borrowing costs by the Bank of Japan for only the second time in 17 years -- sending shivers through financial markets as the yen jumped in value.
That forced many investors to unwind yen carry-trades: when they borrowed at zero or low interest rates in the yen to convert it into other currencies and buy higher yielding assets -- like US tech stocks which have soared this past year.
The unwinding triggered Monday's collapse in stocks that saw trillions of dollars wiped off valuations globally, with the Tokyo stock exchange losing over 12 percent.
BoJ deputy governor Shinichi Uchida on Wednesday sought to allay fears of further interest rate hikes, indicating that it would not raise them further during a period of high market volatility.
This dovish signal on rates sparked a nearly two percent drop in the yen, while the Tokyo stock market closed up 1.2 percent.
"This dampened fears that the BOJ would rush to raise rates further, as it was last week's bigger-than-expected hike which was seen as one of the triggers for the stock market rout," said Trade Nation analyst David Morrison.
The retreat in the yen "should take some pressure off those still exposed to the yen carry-trade, of which there are still significant numbers," added Morrison.
With the dovish signal from the BoJ and the lack of any bad economic data, investors "are realising that there may have been a bit of an overreaction to the Bank of Japan's larger than expected policy tightening last week," said City Index and FOREX.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada.
While relative calm has returned to trading floors, some observers warned investors to remain wary.
"Turnaround Tuesday truly lived up to its name with the dramatic surge in Japanese stocks" after Monday's plunge, said independent analyst Stephen Innes.
"This volatility is typical of more prolonged and chaotic market downturns, which could prompt investors to adopt a cautious stance, hold on tight, and keep the antacids ready," he added in his Dark Side Of The Boom newsletter.
In corporate news, Disney reported better revenues than anticipated in the most recent quarter and its first profit from its streaming business.
But its shares fell two percent as investors chose to focus on the fact that profits narrowed at its domestic theme parks.
- Key figures around 1530 GMT -
New York - Dow: UP 0.9 percent at 39,359.87 points
New York - S&P 500: UP 1.3 percent at 5,309.82
New York - Nasdaq Composite: UP 1.5 percent at 16,616.27
London - FTSE 100: UP 1.8 percent at 8,166.88 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: UP 1.9 percent at 7,266.01 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 1.5 percent at 17,615.15 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: UP 2.0 percent at 4,668.88 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.2 percent at 35,089.62 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.4 percent at 16,877.86 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 2,869.83 (close)
Dollar/yen: UP at 147.46 yen from 144.68 yen on Tuesday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0934 from $1.0933
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2721 from $1.2691
Euro/pound: DOWN at 85.95 pence from 86.12 pence
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 3.1 percent at $78.85 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 3.6 percent at $75.81 per barrel
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C.Garcia--AMWN