U.S. stock futures wavered Friday ahead of the simultaneous expiration of an array of stock futures and options contracts that could result in increased volatility. Futures tied to the S&P 500 wavered between losses and gains. The benchmark may still be on track to eke out a tepid gain for the week, despite two consecutive days of declines. Contracts tied to the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ticked up 0.5%. The occurrence of so-called quadruple witching — when both futures and options linked to individual stocks and stock indexes expire on the ...

Stocks struggled on Friday as worries about a resurgence in coronavirus cases and lingering disappointment that central banks merely affirmed their monetary support this week, without promising new stimulus, kept investors wary. Oil rose after OPEC flagged a crackdown on members that did not cut output, and the dollar was back to the bottom of its recent range following its brief journey higher after Wednesday’s U.S. Federal Reserve meeting. The Fed promised to keep rates low for a long time, but gave no new hints about any further monetary support. ...

U.S. stock futures fell Thursday, pointing to a steepening rout in the S&P 500 as investors became unsettled by the Federal Reserve’s dour outlook as well as conflicting signals about when vaccines may become available. Futures tied to the S&P 500 dropped 1.2%, suggesting that the benchmark may fall for a second day after the opening bell in New York. Contracts tied to the Nasdaq Composite fell around 1%, pushing the tech-heavy index further into negative territory for the month. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s comments Wednesday that the economic ...

The week that was: Global stock markets continued their decline this week following the lead of US markets. The range in Europe was tighter than elsewhere. US-China trade tensions, the impending American presidential election, and the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic weighed on markets. The Nasdaq went into its first correction since March, prompting some hedge funds to buy on the dip. China’s tech heavy ChiNext Index fell through various levels of support. Given the soaring prices, a tech correction may have been healthy. When the pandemic is over, some of ...

European Union companies must turn to capital markets in greater numbers to repair their new coronavirus-ravaged balance sheets as banks alone can’t plug the funding gap, the New Financial think tank said in a report on Friday. The bloc has for years been trying to boost the use of capital markets and reduce the preference of smaller, family-run firms in particular for bank loans, a project made all the more urgent by Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic. The relative underdevelopment of capital markets in the European Union compared with Britain ...

Asian shares gained on Tuesday following a small bounce in European markets and shrugging off concerns over the latest U.S.-China tensions, as investors looked to whether high-flying U.S. tech shares could recover from their recent rout. European markets appeared set for a higher open with both Euro Stoxx 50 futures STXEc1 and FTSE futures FFIc1 up 0.3%. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS rose 0.4%. Japan’s Nikkei .N225 added 0.8%, even as revised data confirmed the nation had slumped into its worst postwar contraction, with business spending ...

European shares rebounded on Monday after a Wall Street-led rout in technology stocks kept global sentiment subdued in the previous week, with investors keeping a close watch on COVID-19 vaccine developments. Australia expects to receive its first batches of a potential COVID-19 vaccine in January after a deal was struck with CSL (CSL.AX) to manufacture two vaccines – one developed by rival AstraZeneca (AZN.L) and Oxford University, and another in CSL’s own labs with the University of Queensland. AstraZeneca rose 1.5%. The European healthcare sector index .SXDP jumped 0.9%. The ...

Stocks started September on a positive note, with global indexes close to all-time highs and Europe edging higher, pushed up by Chinese factory data that showed a rebound in demand. Factory activity in China expanded at the fastest rate in nearly a decade in August, a private PMI survey showed on Tuesday, contrasting with an official survey on Monday that showed output in the country’s factories grew slightly more slowly last month as floods hit the southwest. Both surveys pointed to improving export orders. The MSCI world equity index, which ...

European shares rose on Monday as heavyweight oil and gas players were supported by higher crude prices and merger talks in major French utilities saw the sector outperform regional peers. The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.5%, adding to mild gains from the prior week amid some optimism over COVID-19 treatments. A British market holiday seemed likely to keep trading volumes subdued for the day. The STOXX 600 was set to add nearly 4% for August. Still, it remains way off pre-pandemic highs as middling economic data and a resurgence ...

The Chinese stock market climbed on Friday, with blue-chip shares clocking their best week in four, as sentiment was supported by improving economic data and a slew of new listings. ** The Shanghai Composite index closed up 1.6% at 3,403.81. The blue-chip CSI300 index jumped 2.4%. ** Stocks clung on to a momentum this week that was fuelled by upbeat data showing improving industrial profits and a surge in the start-up Chinext board. ** The CSI300 rose 2.7% this week – its best in four – and Shanghai shares up ...

European shares opened lower on Thursday and the dollar was slightly higher, as investors focused on the U.S. Federal Reserve Chair’s speech at the virtual Jackson Hole conference later in the session. Wall Street hit new record highs on Wednesday and the MSCI world share index also rose to its highest ever, with the endless supply of cheap cash from central banks pushing up big-cap tech companies. But the rally petered out in the Asian session, with an element of caution coming from the United States sanctioning China over military ...

Chinese shares closed lower on Wednesday, hurt by weakness in tech-heavy startup board ChiNext, after investors booked profits after two consecutive sessions of sharp gains. ** The blue-chip CSI300 index ended down 1.2% at 4,706.13 and the Shanghai Composite index shed 1.3% to close at 3,329.74. ** ChiNext dropped 2.1%, while the STAR50 index was down 3.1%. ** Fourteen out of 18 companies that debuted on ChiNext on Monday, as part of a historic reform that relaxed listing requirements and trading rules of Shenzhen stock bourse, posted huge losses. ** ...

Asian stock markets were mostly higher on Tuesday after the U.S and China indicated progress in trade talks, and as hopes of new coronavirus treatments boosted broader sentiment among global investors. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.1% and was trading just below a two-year high. Japan’s Nikkei rose 1.4%, while banking stocks led Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 up 0.34%. Futures suggest a positive start to Europe’s trading day, with Euro STOXX 50 futures up 0.4% and FTSE futures up 0.3%. S&P 500 futures extended modest gains ...

Asian shares advanced for a second straight session on Monday, underpinned by coronavirus hopes after U.S. regulators authorised the use of blood plasma from recovered patients as a treatment option. The announcement from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration of a so-called “emergency use authorisation” came on the eve of the Republican National Convention, where Donald Trump will be nominated to lead his party for four more years. E-Mini futures for the S&P500 gained 0.4%. European markets were also set for a leg higher with futures for Euro Stoxx 50 ...

Global stock markets enjoyed cautious gains on Friday, taking their cue from Wall Street tech shares, but tepid economic data and lofty valuations reined in the advances in the wake of huge rally that has wiped out coronavirus losses. Global stocks advanced 0.2% while the pan-European STOXX 600 climbed 0.4% after healthy gains in Asian-Pacific bourses in the wake of U.S. tech shares closing higher on Thursday, shrugging off some somber unemployment data in the world’s top economy. European stock markets also looked beyond fresh numbers painting a muted economic ...