Stocks advanced in Europe on Wednesday after most markets in Asia fell, although Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index closed at another all-time high.
Investors are awaiting comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to a congressional committee and awaiting earnings reports.
Germany’s DAX gained 0.2% to 18,280.58 and the CAC 40 in Paris was almost unchanged at 7,510.64. In London, the FTSE 100 rose 0.3% to 8,166.49.
The future of S&OP 500 rose 0.1%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.1%.
In Asian trading, the Japanese benchmark gained 0.6% to close at 41,831.99. It also had a record close on Tuesday and reached an all-time high of 41,889.16 during the day on Wednesday.
The Nikkei 225 has gained nearly 30% over the past year and is up 5% over the past three months.
Investors have been snapping up technology-related stocks as excitement about the potential of artificial intelligence grows. Export-oriented companies also posted strong gains as their profits soared due to the weakness of the Japanese yen against the US dollar.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index fell 0.2% to 17,479.12, while the Shanghai Composite index lost 0.7% to 2,939.36.
China reported that its consumer price index fell to 0.2% in June from 0.3% in May, below expectations, largely due to declines in the prices of foods other than pork.
“Weak consumer confidence continues to drive consumption towards value for money purchases, and competition in the EV sector continues to drive down prices, suppressing overall inflation,” said Lynn Song of ING Economics in a comment.
S of Australia&OP/ASX 200 was down 0.2% at 7,816.80.
In Seoul, the Kospi remained almost unchanged at 2,867.99. Taiwan’s Taiex gained 0.5% while India’s Sensex lost 0.7%.
On Tuesday, S.&The OP 500 and the Nasdaq Composite each rose 0.1%, enough to send the indexes to all-time highs for the second time this week. The Dow fell 0.1%.
Stocks have been steadily gaining ground in recent months and that has helped boost the S&P500 to 36 registrations so far this year.
In testimony Tuesday before the Senate Banking Committee, Fed Chairman Powell reiterated that inflation has decreased particularly in the last two years, although it exceeds the central bank’s 2% target. There is a risk that the Fed could decide to cut interest rates too late or too little, he said, warning that either scenario could end up weakening the economy and the job market.
Powell is scheduled to testify Wednesday before the House Financial Services Committee.
Wall Street expects a report released Thursday to show that consumer prices fell to 3.1% in June from 3.3% in May. A report on wholesale inflation, before costs are passed on to consumers, is expected on Friday.
Traders are still betting that there is a 70% chance that the central bank will cut its main interest rate as early as September, according to data from the CME Group.
The Fed has remained cautious about taking action on interest rates, keeping its benchmark interest rate at its highest level in more than two decades as it cautiously waits for more signs that inflation is still cooling.
Among this week’s earnings reports, Delta Air Lines will release its results on Thursday.
Updates from JPMorgan, Citigroup and Wells Fargo will arrive on Friday. They could provide more information about consumer debt levels and whether banks are concerned about payments and potential defaults.
In other trading Wednesday morning, benchmark U.S. crude fell 46 cents to $80.95 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Brent crude, the international standard, gave up 53 cents to $84.13 per barrel.
The US dollar rose to 161.40 Japanese yen from 161.34 yen. The euro rose to $1.0824 from $1.0813.
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