Global markets update: US stocks end mostly flat on mixed earnings
US stocks closed mostly flat on Wednesday following mixed corporate earnings from major US companies.
The S&P 500 lost 0.01% at 4,154.52. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.23% at 33,897.01. The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.03% at 12,157.23.
Netflix stock fell after reporting weaker than expected earnings. Shares of Abbott Laboratories, United Airlines and Western Alliance Bancorp rose after reporting stronger than expected results for the first quarter.
Morgan Stanley declined after posting a 20% fall in its net income.
The yield on 10-year treasury rose 2.5 basis points to 3.597%. The yield on 2-year treasury was higher 6.2 basis points at 4.261%.
Currencies
The US dollar rose to 134.73 Japanese yen from 134.08. The greenback fell to 1.0953 euro from 1.0972.
Canada
Canada’s Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index edged lower 3.85 points at 20,680.83.
European shares
European shares slipped on Wednesday as worries about inflation and more interest rate hikes weighed on sentiments.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.1%.
Britain’s annual inflation rate eased to 10.1% in March from February’s 10.4%. Britain’s consumer price inflation is the highest in western Europe.
The high inflation could prompt another interest rate hike from the Bank of England.
Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.1% at 7,898.77. Germany’s DAX lost less than 0.1% at 15,895.20. France’s CAC 40 added 0.2% at 7,549.44.
Euro zone inflation eased in March but underlying readings remained stubbornly high, raising worries at the ECB about the persistence of price pressures.
Asia
Asian stocks ended mostly lower on Wednesday.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index tanked 1.4% at 20,367.76. In China, Shanghai Composite index dipped 0.7% at 3,370.13. South Korean benchmark Kospi closed up 0.16% at 2,575.08.
Japan’s Nikkei 225: dropped 0.2% at 28,606.76.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.1% at 7,365.50. New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index ended 0.3% higher at 11,917.82.
Crude oil
Oil prices shed 2% on fears that the US Federal Reserve could hike rates sharply again, which in turn would dent demand.
On Wednesday, Brent crude for June delivery declined $1.65 to $83.12 a barrel. The benchmark US crude oil for May delivery fell $1.70 to $79.16 a barrel.
Bullion
Gold for June delivery fell $12.40 to $2,007.30 an ounce. Silver for May delivery rose 11 cents to $25.37 an ounce.
Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin slumped 3.6% at $29,337. Ether fell 5.1% to $1,986.9.
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