- Italy targets climate activists in 'anti-Gandhi' demo clampdown
- US trade chief defends tariff hikes when paired with investment
- EU court blocks French ban on vegetable 'steak' labelling
- Meta AI turns pictures into videos with sound
- US dockworkers return to ports after three-day strike
- DR Congo to begin mpox vaccination campaign Saturday in east
- Meta must limit data use for targeted ads: EU court
- Oil extends gains, jobs report lifts Wall Street
- US hiring soars past expectations in sign of resilient market
- As EU targets Chinese cars, European rivals sputter
- Top EU court finds against FIFA in key transfer market ruling
- Oil extends gains, Hong Kong stocks resume rally
- 'A man provides': Ukrainian miners send families away as Russia advances
- EU states greenlight extra tariffs on EVs from China
- Hong Kong stocks resume rally, oil dips after Middle East-fuelled surge
- Crude stable after Israel-Iran surge, Hong Kong stocks resume gains
- Hera spacecraft to probe asteroid deflected by defence test
- US dockworkers to head back to work after tentative deal
- After Helene's destruction, North Carolina starts to rebuild
- Dockers end three-day strike at Montreal port
- What next for OpenAI after $157 billion bonanza?
- Israel-Hamas war causes 86-percent dive in Gaza GDP: IMF
- Milan's Morata moves house after Inter-fan town mayor 'violates' privacy
- 'Devastating' storm hits Augusta National but Masters will go on
- Relief in Brazil, Asia over delay to EU deforestation rules
- Oil prices jump, stocks fall on Middle East tensions
- Biden says 'discussing' possible Israeli strikes on Iran oil facilities
- Oil prices rise, stocks fall on Middle East tensions
- Oil rallies, stocks mostly retreat on Middle East tensions
- Phasing out teen smoking could save 1.2 mn lives: study
- 'Welcome relief': Asia producers hail EU deforestation law delay
- Japan PM slated to announce plans for 'happiness index'
- Turkish inflation falls less than expected in September at 49.4%
- Easing inflation lifts profit at UK supermarket Tesco
- Skiing calls on UN climate science to combat melting future
- China wine industry looks to breed climate resilience
- Tokyo rallies on weak yen, Hong Kong drops after surge
- Dutch airline KLM unveils 'firm' cost-cutting measures
- Carpe diem: the Costa Rican women turning fish into fashion
- Senegal looks to aquaculture as fish stocks dwindle
- Will AI one day win a Nobel Prize?
- Climate change, economics muddy West's drive to curb Chinese EVs
- Argentina's Milei vetoes university budget after huge protests
- TotalEnergies plans to grow oil and gas production until 2030
- 2024 Nobels offer glimmer of hope as global crises mount
- Tokyo rallies on weak yen, Hong Kong reverses after surge
- Tunisia readies for vote as incumbent Saied eyes victory
- High childcare costs in US weigh on women's employment
- US voters seek help with crushing childcare costs
- Taiwan shuts down for second day as Typhoon Krathon to land
European stocks diverge before major UK, ECB announcements
European stock markets traded mixed Thursday, ahead of major policy decisions from Britain and the European Central Bank aimed at tackling sky-high inflation.
The pound remained close to a 37-year low against the dollar that was struck Wednesday, as new British Prime Minister Liz Truss prepared to announce that she will freeze domestic fuel bills to help ease the burden of a UK cost-of-living crisis.
The euro steadied versus the greenback, with the ECB forecast to hike eurozone interest rates by a record-high 75 basis points.
Oil prices dropped further on fears of a global recession but losses were far less sharp than on Wednesday.
"There may be fresh storms brewing for the global economy but inflation is the tornado to tame and the drop in crude prices has lifted hopes in the US at least that the price spiral may be easier to control," noted Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Fears abound that global central bank moves to rein in runaway inflation by ratcheting up borrowing costs will spark recessions in leading economies.
The dollar has moved ever higher against its major peers in recent weeks as investors flood into the currency hoping for better returns and as they seek a haven in the face of economic turmoil.
The US unit is closing in on a 32-year peak against the yen owing to the Bank of Japan's refusal to raise interest rates.
Observers expect the dollar to keep attracting strong interest as long as the Federal Reserve keeps ramping up US interest rates by sizeable amounts.
The Fed holds its next policy meeting on September 21, with a third successive 75-basis-point lift forecast.
"For years, central bank interest rate decisions used to be background noise, with investors confident that rates would stay low," Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said Thursday.
"This year they've become must-watch events, with every word studied by the market. The current theme is not whether central banks will raise rates, but by how much."
On the corporate front, shares in cyber security company Darktrace crashed around 30 percent after US private equity firm Thoma Bravo ended its takeover interest in the British group.
- Key figures at around 1000 GMT -
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.3 percent at 7,256.23 points
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.1 percent at 12,901.90
Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.4 percent at 6,130.18
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.2 percent at 3,507.91
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 2.3 percent at 28,065.28 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.0 percent at 18,854.62 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.3 percent at 3,235.59 (close)
New York - Dow: UP 1.4 percent at 31,581.28 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $0.9996 from $1.0012 on Wednesday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.1486 from $1.1535
Euro/pound: UP at 87.01 pence from 86.74 pence
Dollar/yen: UP at 143.87 yen from 143.79 yen
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.6 percent at $81.43 per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 0.3 percent at $87.71 per barrel
burs-bcp/rfj/cdw
S.F.Lacroix--CPN