- France mourns Mayotte victims amid uncertainy over government
- UK economy stagnant in third quarter in fresh setback
- Sweden says China denied request for prosecutors to probe ship linked to cut undersea cables
- African players in Europe: Salah leads Golden Boot race after brace
- Global stock markets edge higher as US inflation eases rate fears
- German far-right AfD to march in city hit by Christmas market attack
- Ireland centre Henshaw signs IRFU contract extension
- Bangladesh launches $5bn graft probe into Hasina's family
- US probes China chip industry on 'anticompetitive' concerns
- Biden commutes sentences for 37 of 40 federal death row inmates
- Clock ticks down on France government nomination
- 'Devastated' Australian tennis star Purcell provisionally suspended for doping
- Mozambique on edge as judges rule on disputed election
- Mobile cinema brings Tunisians big screen experience
- Philippines says to acquire US Typhon missile system
- Honda and Nissan to launch merger talks
- Police arrest suspect who set woman on fire in New York subway
- China vows 'cooperation' over ship linked to severed Baltic Sea cables
- Australian tennis star Purcell provisionally suspended for doping
- Asian markets track Wall St rally as US inflation eases rate fears
- Luxury Western goods line Russian stores, three years into sanctions
- Wallace and Gromit return with comic warning about AI dystopia
- Philippine military says will acquire US Typhon missile system
- Afghan bread, the humble centrepiece of every meal
- Honda and Nissan expected to begin merger talks
- 'Draconian' Vietnam internet law heightens free speech fears
- Israeli women mobilise against ultra-Orthodox military exemptions
- Asian markets track Wall St rally as US inflation eases rate worries
- Tens of thousands protest in Serbian capital over fatal train station accident
- Trump vows to 'stop transgender lunacy' as a top priority
- Daniels throws five TDs as Commanders down Eagles, Lions and Vikings win
- 'Who's next?': Misinformation and online threats after US CEO slaying
- Only 12 trucks delivered food, water in North Gaza Governorate since October: Oxfam
- Beyond Work Unveils Next-Generation Memory-Augmented AI Agent (MATRIX) for Enterprise Document Intelligence
- Northern Superior Announces ONGold's Completion of Monument Bay and Domain Projects Acquisition in Manitoba
- ARIA Cybersecurity Solutions Partners with UFT to Protect Water Treatment Facilities from Dangerous Cyberattacks
- Clear Start Tax Named 2024 Orange County Register’s Top Workplaces for Exceptional Tax Resolution Service and Workplace Culture
- Ensysce Biosciences Regains Full Compliance with Nasdaq
- Tortoise Capital Completes Merger of Tortoise Power and Energy Infrastructure Fund, Inc. (NYSE: TPZ), Tortoise Pipeline & Energy Fund, Inc. (NYSE: TTP), and Tortoise Energy Independence Fund, Inc. (NYSE: NDP) and Conversion to Actively Managed ETF
- Tortoise Capital Completes Merger of Tortoise Energy Infrastructure Corp. (NYSE: TYG) and Tortoise Midstream Energy Fund, Inc. (NYSE: NTG)
- Telomir Pharmaceuticals Confirms Copper Binding Capabilities of Telomir-1 and Expands Pipeline Into Wilson's Disease
- Datametrex Cancels RSUS
- South Star Battery Metals Announces Upsize of Non-Brokered Private Placement to Raise Up to US$3.20M, Extends Closing and Amended and Restated Stream Agreement
- Brightline Interactive Successfully Delivers A Scalable Immersive Simulation To A Global Government Service Integrator, Positioning Itself As A Leading Operating System For Processing And Visualizing Complex Information In 3D Space
- Urb NM is Named "Fastest Growing" Marijuana Brand in New Mexico
- Alset AI Broadens Investment Policy to Embrace Decentralized AI, Quantum AI, Quantum Computing, and Cryptocurrency Opportunities
- Strawberry Fields REIT Enters Into Agreement for Six Healthcare Facilities Located in Kansas
- NanoViricides is in a Great Position to Fight Potential Bird Flu Pandemic with a Drug that the Mercurial H5N1 Influenza A Virus is Unlikely to Escape
- Zomedica Launches Two New Quantitative Assays on the TRUFORMA(R) Platform: Canine NT-proBNP and Progesterone
- MainStreetChamber Holdings, Inc. Submits 15(c)211 Application
Stocks mostly rise as US inflation data boosts rate cut hopes
US and European stock markets mostly rose on Wednesday after inflation data cemented expectations that the Federal Reserve will trim interest rates next month.
Wall Street's three main indexes pushed higher at the opening bell after November consumer inflation figures were in line with analyst expectations.
The consumer price index (CPI) rose to 2.7 percent last month from a year ago, up slightly from 2.6 percent in October.
"With the CPI numbers broadly in line, it is likely that the Fed will not be derailed and will cut rates again next week," Jochen Stanzl, chief market analyst at CMC Markets.
"The data is not a showstopper for the current bull run on Wall Street," he added.
Ahead of the data investors priced in a 86 percent chance the Fed will next week cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point. That rose to 98 percent after the CPI data was published.
But with inflation already ticking higher, and the possibility that US president-elect Donald Trump's planned policies could reignite price increases, analysts see the Fed likely taking a breather.
"The Fed will likely await further jobs market and inflationary data before considering the third instalment of this rate cutting cycle, allowing the latest rate cut to have its full effect," said Srijan Katyal, chief strategist at ADSS brokerage.
Meanwhile the S&P 500 advanced solidly and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained more than one percent, flirting with the 20,000 level.
However the Dow gave up its early gains and was flat as European markets closed.
Paris and Frankfurt stocks rose ahead of the European Central Bank's own interest rate announcement on Thursday, with analysts expecting another cut as it seeks to boost eurozone growth.
Investors are also eyeing political developments in France, where officials said President Emmanuel Macron aims to name a new prime minister "within 48 hours" as he seeks to end political deadlock following the ouster of Michel Barnier.
In company news, shares in German retail giant Zalando shed more than four percent on Frankfurt's DAX index, after it acquired domestic rival About You in a deal worth around 1.1 billion euros ($1.2 billion).
Shares in Zara owner Inditex slid more than six percent after a record quarterly profit for the group fell short of market estimates.
Shares in Shanghai rose but Hong Kong gave up an early rally to end in the red.
Traders were keeping tabs on China to see if it will announce further measures to support its struggling economy as leaders gather Wednesday for a conference to hammer out next year's agenda.
President Xi Jinping and other top leaders on Monday announced their first major shift in policy for more than a decade, saying they would "implement a more active fiscal policy and an appropriately relaxed" strategy.
Those remarks sparked hopes for more interest rate cuts and the freeing up of more cash for lending.
The announcement comes as officials prepare for a second term for Trump, who has indicated he will reignite his hardball trade policies, fuelling fears of another standoff between the superpowers.
- Key figures around 1630 GMT -
New York - Dow: FLAT at 44,243.17 points
New York - S&P 500: UP 0.8 percent at 6,083.03
New York - Nasdaq Composite: UP 1.5 percent at 19,986.96
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.3 percent at 8,301.62 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.4 percent at 7,423.40 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.3 percent at 20,399.16 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: FLAT at 39,372.23 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.8 percent at 20,155.05 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.3 percent at 3,432.49 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0492 from $1.0529 on Tuesday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2749 from $1.2773
Dollar/yen: UP at 152.48 yen from 151.92 yen
Euro/pound: DOWN at 82.30 from 82.42 pence
Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.1 percent at $71.05 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.6 percent at $69.66 per barrel
burs-rl/sbk
B.Finley--AMWN