- Mixed US car sales in Q3 as industry hopes for post-election bounce
- Spurs star Maddison eyes return to England squad
- Eight Israel soldiers dead as Hezbollah claims to repel incursion
- French luxury goods giant LVMH in F1 sponsorship deal
- Juve's injury-hit Milik undergoes more knee surgery
- Pochettino gives chance to USA squad to prove their worth
- NBA legend Jordan files anti-trust lawsuit against NASCAR
- Bridgestone latest Japanese firm to end Olympics sponsorship
- Thunderstorms are a 'boiling pot' of gamma rays, scientists find
- McIlroy hopeful golf's civil war will be over by end of 2024
- Oil prices pare strong gains, stocks waver on Middle East worries
- Buttler returns as England captain for West Indies tour
- Biden, Harris travel to areas hit hard by Hurricane Helene
- First deaths as Israeli ground forces clash with Hezbollah
- Macron backs Chinese EV tariffs as Scholz calls for dialogue
- Study reveals long-term death toll of cyclones as world battered
- Scientists unlock secret of 'Girl With Pearl Earring'
- Dolphins flash friendly grins when they're ready to play
- Russia opens 'extremist' trial of four independent journalists
- Alcaraz 'got the joy back' after dramatic Beijing title win
- How will Israel react to Iranian missile attack?
- British jets 'played their part' in defending Israel: UK
- Carter beloved in hometown, but many voting for Trump
- Oil prices rise further, stocks waver on Middle East worries
- Facing backlash, EU moves to delay deforestation rules
- US private sector adds more jobs than expected in September: ADP
- Israel, Hezbollah in deadly fighting on Lebanon border
- Boys out of critical condition after Zurich stabbings
- EU queries Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube over 'harmful' content risks
- Battling Alcaraz outlasts Sinner in thriller to win China Open
- Barca lure goalkeeper Szczesny out of retirement
- Blasts, shooting around Israeli embassies in Nordic capitals
- Spain logs record summer tourism as inflow draws protests
- Hedi Slimane quits as Celine's artistic director
- Oil prices extend rally on Iran attack
- Britain's Starmer in Brussels to flesh out EU 'reset' pledge
- Pope opens new debates on Catholic Church future
- Ukraine withdraws from eastern town of Vugledar
- Weeping families mourn Thai school bus crash victims
- Pride and fear in Iran after missile attack on Israel
- Spain welcomed record number of tourists this summer
- Newest China tennis hope Bu takes hard path to face world's best
- France says coming tax hikes on the wealthy to be 'temporary'
- Why are Thailand's roads so deadly?
- 'Humiliated' profession - Afghan media says abuses rising
- Biden, Harris to visit Hurricane Helene disaster zone
- Oracle to invest $6.5 bn in Malaysian cloud services region
- Parkrun marks 20 years of a free weekly jog, run... or walk
- Thousands march in India as doctors resume strike
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Oil prices pare strong gains, stocks waver on Middle East worries
Stock markets wavered while oil prices faded after early strong gains Wednesday as Iran's missile attack on Israel fanned fears of a Middle East-wide conflict.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, briefly topped $75 per barrel while West Texas Intermediate was above $72, with both more than three percent higher before paring the gains to barely 0.5 percent.
Oil producer Iran launched its second ever direct attack on Israel on Tuesday, firing what it said were 200 missiles in retaliation for the killings of Tehran-backed militants.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to make Iran "pay" for its "big mistake" while Tehran warned Wednesday that it would launch an even bigger attack if it is targeted.
The attack sent oil prices surging by as much as five percent on Tuesday.
"It is all about Middle East conflict now, when it comes to oil prices," said Fawad Razaqzada, analyst at City Index and Forex.com.
"The extent of Israel's potential response to Iran will influence how much further geopolitical risk markets are likely to factor in," he said.
Prices could fall if Israehas a "measured" response and avoids hitting Iran's nuclear facilities, he said.
"However, if Israel lures in the US in its fight, or responds with an even bigger attack this time, then watch out for oil prices to potentially sky rocket," Razaqzada added in a note.
Naeem Aslam, analyst at Zaye Capital, said prices could be "flirting near the $100" mark if a really serious threat materialises.
Oil prices had been struggling this year due to concerns over weakness in the Chinese economy and expectations of higher production from Saudi Arabia and seven other members of the OPEC+ crude cartel.
"With Israel now expected to retaliate, the chances of further escalation are high, prompting a pivot in (oil) market sentiment from concerns over excess supply to fears of shortages," said Ricardo Evangelista, senior analyst at ActivTrades.
- Wall Street edging into green -
On Wall Street the Dow, the tech-heavy Nasdaq and broad-based S&P 500 were all barely up some two hours into trading while equity markets closed mixed in Europe. Frankfurt edged down with Paris ending flat with London closing the session just ahead, helped by share-price gains for oil giants BP and Shell.
Hong Kong's stock market surged more than six percent by the close, continuing a sharp rally after China last week unveiled a raft of measures to boost its economy, particularly the troubled property sector.
Markets were closed in Shanghai and Shenzhen for a week-long holiday, having also zoomed higher before the break. Tokyo fell more than two percent.
Property developers led the surge in Hong Kong on Wednesday, with Agile Group rocketing 160 percent higher and Sunac China Holdings up more than 75 percent.
However, the firms were still at just a fraction of their prices three years ago.
While the Middle East conflict has investors worried, they remain focused on the US Federal Reserve's future plans for interest rates and will look closely at jobs data Friday for clues about the central bank's next move.
- Key figures around 1550 GMT -
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.4 percent at $73.87 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.5 percent at $70.20 per barrel
New York - Dow: UP 0.2 percent at 42,252.92 points
New York - S&P 500: UP 0.2 percent at 5,718.52
New York - Nasdaq: UP 0.3 percent at 17,965.90
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 8,290.86 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: FLAT at 7,577.59 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.3 percent at 19,164.75 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 6.2 percent at 22,443.73 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 2.2 percent at 37,808.76 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: Closed for a holiday
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1043 from $1.1067 on Tuesday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3266 from $1.3279
Dollar/yen: UP at 146.18 yen from 143.57 yen
Euro/pound: DOWN at 83.25 pence from 83.34 pence
F.Dubois--AMWN