- 'Dark day': Victims mourned around the globe on Oct. 7 anniversary
- Mission to probe smashed asteroid launches despite hurricane
- Oil prices extend gains on Mideast tensions, Wall Street slips
- Europe's asteroid mission Hera launches despite hurricane
- Oil prices extend gains on Mideast tensions, Wall Street retreats
- What is microRNA? Nobel-winning discovery explained
- Weather may delay launch of mission to study deflected asteroid
- China to flesh out economic stimulus plans after bumper rally
- Asian markets track Wall St rally on US jobs data
- World marks anniversary of Oct. 7 attack on Israel
- Asian markets track Wall St rally on jobs data
- Cancer, cardiovascular drugs tipped for Nobel as prize week opens
- Tunisia incumbent Saied set to win presidential vote: exit polls
- 'Difficult day': Oct 7 commemorations begin with festival memorial
- Commemorations begin for anniversary of attack on Israel
- Tunisia voting ends as Saied eyes re-election with critics behind bars
- Drowned by hurricane, remote N.Carolina towns now struggle for water
- Two elephants die in flash flooding in northern Thailand
- Tunisia votes with Saied set for re-election
- Too hot by day, Dubai's floodlit beaches are packed at night
- A 'forgotten' valley in storm-hit North Carolina, desperate for help
- 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
RBGPF | -1.97% | 58.94 | $ | |
CMSC | -0.2% | 24.65 | $ | |
SCS | -0.7% | 12.88 | $ | |
BCC | 0.48% | 139.569 | $ | |
GSK | 0.06% | 38.845 | $ | |
NGG | -1.28% | 65.66 | $ | |
BCE | -0.33% | 33.6 | $ | |
RIO | -0.13% | 69.61 | $ | |
BTI | -0.02% | 35.284 | $ | |
RYCEF | -1.45% | 6.88 | $ | |
RELX | -0.6% | 46.015 | $ | |
JRI | -0.38% | 13.23 | $ | |
CMSD | -0.09% | 24.79 | $ | |
BP | 0.74% | 33.125 | $ | |
AZN | -0.36% | 77.19 | $ | |
VOD | 0.21% | 9.68 | $ |
European equities slip on Ukraine fears, US markets slump
Global markets slid Wednesday with investors in Europe spooked by a deadly missile blast in Poland, while US markets fretted over a major retailer's warnings about a weak holiday season.
London slid 0.3 percent, weighed down by news UK inflation spiked to a 41-year peak in October amid rocketing energy bills and food prices.
Frankfurt fell 1.0 percent and Paris stocks sank 0.5 percent after Asia closed mostly in the red.
US stocks closed lower as well, with the broad-based S&P 500 shedding 0.8 percent.
The dollar rose against the yen, but slid against the euro and pound.
"Reports of missile strikes in Poland on Tuesday naturally caused a shudder in the markets," said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at trading platform OANDA.
"The prospect of a sudden and unexpected escalation in the war in Ukraine, particularly involving a NATO state, doesn't bear thinking about but we were almost forced to," he added.
Two people were killed on Tuesday when at least one missile hit a village in NATO member Poland near the Ukrainian border during a mass Russian bombardment.
While there were fears the incident could mark a fresh conflict escalation, Poland has since announced that the projectile likely originated from Ukraine's own air defenses -- a theory endorsed by Washington and helping to calm market jitters.
- 'Reeling' -
In Britain, official data showed UK inflation surged in October to 11.1 percent, the highest level since 1981 in a worsening cost-of-living crisis.
The grim news came on the eve of a gloomy UK government budget likely to ramp up taxes and slash spending.
"The UK is reeling from yet another super-hot inflation reading as soaring food and energy prices take their toll on household budgets," said Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Susannah Streeter.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine this year has sent food and energy prices soaring worldwide, adding to earlier pandemic-fueled supply constraints.
Rocketing consumer prices has forced central banks to hike interest rates steeply, risking a global recession.
Given some relief from recent data indicating US inflation was easing and the economy slowing, Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said he was "comfortable" considering a less aggressive pace of interest rate hikes, although more increases are still needed.
US data showed retail sales jumped more than expected in October, pointing to resilience in consumer spending, but major chain Target reported weaker-than-expected results, warning of a weak holiday shopping season.
Target CEO Brian Cornell said "sales and profit trends softened meaningfully, with guests' shopping behavior increasingly impacted by inflation, rising interest rates and economic uncertainty."
Target shares tumbled 13.1 percent.
- Key figures around 2145 GMT -
New York - Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 33,553.83 points (close)
New York - S&P 500: DOWN 0.8 percent at 3,958.79 (close)
New York - Nasdaq: DOWN 1.5 percent at 11,183.66 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.8 percent at 3,882.78 (close)
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3 percent at 7,351.19 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 1.0 percent at 14,234.03 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.5 percent at 6,607.22 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.1 percent at 28,028.30 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 18,256.48 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.5 percent at 3,119.98 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0395 from $1.0354 on Tuesday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.1914 from $1.1871
Dollar/yen: UP at 139.54 yen from 139.16 yen
Euro/pound: UP at 87.21 pence from 87.18 pence
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 1.1 percent at $92.86 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.5 percent at $85.59 per barrel
burs-rl-bys/hs
Y.Ponomarenko--CPN