Wall Street mixed and FTSE closes muted as Fed rate cut hopes dim
The FTSE and European markets finished mixed this Monday amid the diminishing prospect of a cut in US interest rates in the first quarter.
The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) finished flat at 7,694 points, while the CAC 40 (^FCHI) in Paris rose 0.3% to 7,441 points. In Germany, the DAX (^GDAXI) gained 0.6% to 16,696. Europe’s Stoxx 600 (^STOXX) gained 0.3% after being in negative territory for most of the session.
On Wall Street, US stocks traded mixed, with the Dow pulling lower as Boeing (BA) shares sold off and uncertainty about the prospects for interest-rate cuts continued to weigh on markets.
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The Dow Jones (^DJI) slipped 0.2% to 37,376 points while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.5% to 4,720 points. The tech-heavy NASDAQ (^IXIC) gained 1.1% to 14,687.
Investors digested more strong US labour market data that could convince the Federal Reserve to keep upward pressure on inflation. That in turn could mean the Fed will hold interest rates high for longer than expected.
This week sees the release of US inflation figures on Thursday followed the next day by results from banking giants including JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Citigroup (C).
In Asia, the Hang Seng (^HSI) in Hong Kong plunged 2% overnight to 16,201 points, while the Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) lost 1.4% to 2,887 points. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 (^N225) bucked the regional trend and rose 0.3% to 33,377 points.
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Reports this week are likely to show deflation deepened last month in China, while growth in imports and exports cooled.
The pound (GBPUSD=X) was higher against the dollar, trading at $1.2727. Sterling (GBPEUR=X) was weaker against the euro, trading at €1.1608.
Meanwhile, Brent crude (BZ=F) dropped over 3% and was trading at around $75 per barrel amid sharp price cuts by top exporter Saudi Arabia and a rise in OPEC output.
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