- Dozens missing, 9 dead in migrant boat wreck off Spanish Canaries
- Death toll from Hurricane John hits eight in Mexico
- Storm Helene's toll rises as rescue and cleanup efforts gain pace
- SpaceX launches mission to return stranded astronauts
- Storm Helene kills 44, threatens more 'catastrophic' flooding as cleanup begins
- SpaceX set to launch mission to return stranded astronauts
- Storm Helene kills 44, threatens more 'catastrophic' flooding
- Boeing strike grinds on as latest talks fail to reach agreement
- Iran 'news' sites, hackers target Trump ahead of US election
- US ports brace for potential dockworkers strike
- Japan's speedy, spotless Shinkansen bullet trains turn 60
- US hurricane deaths rise to 44, fears of more 'catastrophic' flooding
- Global stocks mostly rise, cheering Beijing stimulus
- Europe en route for Moon with new simulator, says astronaut Pesquet
- Fireworks forecast if comet survives risky Sun flypast
- Argentina judge orders dictionary to delete pejorative definition of 'Jewish'
- Global stocks rise on rate hopes, Beijing stimulus
- S.African woman turns 118, among the oldest in the world
- UK clears $4 bn AI partnership between Amazon, Anthropic
- Barca fans barred from Champions League away game over racist banner
- Chinese stocks extend surge, Europe higher on Beijing stimulus
- Pope says Church must 'seek forgiveness' for child sexual abuse
- China caps week of 'bazooka' stimulus for ailing economy with rate cut
- Cuts, cash, credit: China bids to jumpstart flagging economy
- France's debt weighs heavier ahead of budget debate
- Iran treads carefully, backing Hezbollah while avoiding war
- Return to sender: waste stranded at sea stirs toxic dispute
- 'Broken' news industry faces uncertain future
- On remote Greek island, migratory birds offer climate clues
- Taken from mother by nuns, victim seeks answers as pope visits Belgium
- China cuts amount banks hold in reserve to boost lending
- Hong Kong, Shanghai extend surge as China optimism boosts markets
- Vietnam president reiterates support for Cuba during official visit
- Drought reduces Amazon River in Colombia by as much as 90%: report
- Stay or go? Pacific Islanders face climate's grim choice
- Florida bracing for 'unsurvivable' Hurricane Helene
- Poverty rises to over 52 percent in Milei's Argentina
- Chloe's see-through look may not be for Kamala Harris
- Champagne houses abuzz over English sparkling wine
- Macron, Trudeau pledge to work for 'decarbonized' economies
- Hurricanes, storms, typhoons... Is September wetter than usual?
- China stimulus, tech optimism boost stock markets
- 'Unsurvivable' Hurricane Helene races towards Florida
- Macron meets Trudeau in Canada as both face political setbacks
- South Korea surges in UN innovation index
- Chloe's see-through look may not be for Kamala
- Floods threaten Niger's historic 'gateway to the desert'
- China economy hopes boost global equities
- Ubisoft shares sink after 'Assassin's Creed' delay
- German economy to shrink again in 2024: think tanks
Worries over aggressive Fed shift send US stocks tumbling
Wall Street equities tumbled on Thursday as markets bet that the latest inflation report would compel the Federal Reserve to accelerate efforts to tighten monetary policy and raise lending rates.
Consumer prices in the world's biggest economy rose at an annual rate not seen since February 1982, with a 7.5 percent increase over the 12 months to January, according to government figures.
US stocks opened decisively lower before recovering most of the losses by midday following a mixed session in Europe and an up day for Asian equity markets.
But Wall Street headed south again after St. Louis Fed President James Bullard told Bloomberg he would be open to hiking rates outside of regularly scheduled meetings, and would like to see them up to one percent by July.
Those remarks prompted investors to shift bets towards a bigger interest rate increase in March, and helped lift the yield on the 10-year US Treasury note above two percent.
All three major indices finished sharply lower, with the S&P 500 down 1.8 percent.
"Even though the market was already anticipating a series of rate hikes this year, the hawkish commentary raised concerns that the Fed's tightening plans could be more aggressive and sooner than expected because of persistent inflation pressures," said Briefing.com.
In Europe, London's FTSE 100 rose, Frankfurt's DAX edged higher, and in Paris the CAC 40 slipped.
The continent had its share of negative news, with the European Commission cutting the eurozone's economic growth forecast as energy prices and supply chain problems jack up inflation.
Elsewhere, signs of progress on the diplomatic front in eastern Europe have kept a cap on oil price gains in recent days, as has the possibility of a revived Iran nuclear deal, which could see Tehran resume worldwide petroleum exports and ease supply problems.
Among individual companies, Disney jumped 3.4 percent amid news it added far more subscribers than expected to its Disney+ streaming service in the just-finished quarter while reporting better-than-expected profits.
But Uber fell 6.1 percent as the ride-hailing company's medium-term profit forecast disappointed investors despite having reported solid fourth-quarter earnings.
- Key figures around 2100 GMT -
New York - Dow: DOWN 1.5 percent at 35,241.59 (close)
New York - S&P 500: DOWN 1.8 percent at 4,504.08 (close)
New York - Nasdaq: DOWN 2.1 percent at 14,185.6 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 7,672.40 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: UP less than 0.1 percent at 15,490.44 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.4 percent at 7,101.55 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.2 percent at 4,197.07 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.4 percent at 27,696.08 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.4 percent at 24,924.35 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,485.91 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1434 from $1.1425 late Wednesday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3562 from $1.3535
Euro/pound: DOWN at 84.25 pence from 84.41 pence
Dollar/yen: UP at 115.99 yen from 115.52 yen
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 0.2 percent at $91.41 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.2 percent at $89.88 per barrel
burs-jmb/cs
O.Ignatyev--CPN