Yahoo Finance Wall Street mixed and FTSE closes flat as Powell says little about rates
The FTSE 100 and European stocks were mixed this Wednesday after a speech from Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell said little about the path forward for monetary policy.
The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) closed flat at 7,411 after a choppy session, while the CAC 40 (^FCHI) in Paris climbed 0.72% to 7,036 points. In Germany, the DAX (^GDAXI) bounced back and rose 0.50% to 15,227. The Stoxx 600 (STOXX) climbed 0.33% after starting the session in negative territory.
Powell said the US central bank must combine "intellectual rigour" with "flexibility and agility" in its forecasting as it faces economic surprises.
The Dow Jones (^DJI) slipped 0.10% to 34,122 points. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) was muted at 4,375 points and the tech-heavy NASDAQ (^IXIC) lost 0.15% to 13,120 points.
Yahoo Finance US write that words of caution from several hawkish members of the Fed have put a check on optimism that interest rates have peaked, sapping momentum from the rally in stocks. But 90% of traders are sticking with their bet there won't be a hike this year, and 25% expect a rate cut in March, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
"The last two days have seen European markets struggle to build on the gains of last week, with some modest profit taking starting to kick in, even as investors start to price in the prospect of rate cuts as soon as next year," said analyst Michael Hewson from CMC Markets.
"In the space of a week, we’ve gone from higher for longer back to rate cuts in 2024, and this time the push back from central bankers isn’t anywhere near as aggressive."
In Asia, the Hang Seng (^HSI) in Hong Kong lost 0.43% to 17,593 while the Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) slipped 0.16% to 3,052 points. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 (^N225) also finished in the red, tumbling 0.33% to 32,166 points.
A Reuters poll showed Japanese manufacturers’ business confidence improved for the first time since August and service-sector mood rose for a second month, highlighting a challenging outlook amid a patchy economic recovery.
Read more: Interest rates: The UK banks that pay well, and those that don’t
Meanwhile, Brent crude (BZ=F) are trading lower after falling more than 4% on Tuesday as China’s exports dropped for a sixth straight month, underscoring a slowdown in global demand.
West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) is trading at $75.87 per barrel. Brent (BZ=F) crude futures lost 1.85% to $80.09 per barrel.
Watch: Monetary policy is 'most destructive force' in world economy
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