European stock markets rose Thursday as the European Central Bank cut interest rates again while US shares were steady after a mixed bag of company earnings reports. European markets advanced across the board after the ECB trimmed interest rates for the fifth time since June as inflation eases and the eurozone economy stagnates.In New York, major US indices veered in and out of negative territory before finishing higher following a tidal wave of earnings from Microsoft, IBM and other big companies. Meanwhile, gold hit a new record on uncertainty about the economic and trade policies of President Donald Trump. The ECB move followed the Federal Reserve’s decision to keep US borrowing costs on hold Wednesday as the outlook for inflation, despite coming down, remains more elevated in the United States.Data showed that the eurozone economy was flat in the fourth-quarter with France and Germany contracting slightly, Italy unchanged, and only Spain showing healthy growth among the bloc’s largest economies.By contrast, the US economy grew at an annual rate of 2.3 percent in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department reported, in line with the consensus forecast.Even so, that report disappointed some investors because the growth rate was below expectations, stalling a recent dollar rally.”There are positives to glean about the US economic landscape,” said Bret Kenwell, an analyst at eToro. “The economy continues to grow, while the labor market remains on solid footing.”The ECB cut its rate by a quarter point to 2.75 percent while the Fed kept its benchmark lending rate at between 4.25 percent and 4.50 percent.”There is really no reason to think the ECB won’t continue to cut rates, at least to a neutral level, and we think quite probably below neutral by year-end,” said Deutsche Bank’s European economist Mark Wall. While the ECB is set to keep cutting rates, Fed chairman Jerome Powell said Wednesday that the US central bank was in no “hurry” to adjust its borrowing costs again.Trump, who last week called for rates to “drop immediately”, accused policymakers of failing “to stop the problem they created with inflation”.Powell refused to comment on the US leader’s criticism of the Fed but said decision-makers would “wait and see” how Trump’s plans to impose tariffs, and cut taxes, regulations and immigration would affect the economy.- Eyes on companies -Traders also focused on a slew of corporate earnings.Facebook parent Meta on Wednesday reported surging profits for 2024 and announced ambitious plans to expand its artificial intelligence infrastructure in the year ahead. Its shares were up almost two percent.Elon Musk’s electric car firm Tesla reported lower-than-expected profits but confirmed key 2025 benchmarks. Its shares climbed nearly three percent.IBM was up almost 13 percent, also on positive guidance. Microsoft reported large profits, but its shares slid more than six percent on worries over its vital cloud computing business.Among other companies in the news, American Airlines dropped 2.5 percent as investigators began probing the causes of a crash involving an affiliate carrier of American Airlines and a military helicopter that claimed 67 lives.- Key figures around 2130 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 0.4 percent at 44,882.13 (close)New York – S&P 500: UP 0.5 percent at 6,071.17 (close) New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.3 percent at 19,681.75 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 1.0 percent at 8,646.88 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.9 percent at 7,941.64 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.4 percent at 21,727.20 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.3 percent at 39,513.97 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: Closed for a holidayShanghai – Composite: Closed for a holidayEuro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0392 from $1.0421 Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2420 from $1.2452 WednesdayDollar/yen: DOWN at 154.38 yen from 155.22 yen Euro/pound: DOWN at 83.67 pence from 83.68 pence West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.2 percent at $72.73 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.4 percent at $76.87 per barrel
Thu, 30 Jan 2025 21:42:28 GMT
