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Global stock markets diverge as markets focus on earmings
Wall Street shares steadied Wednesday after a tech selloff the previous day over concerns about the red-hot semiconductor industry as third-quarter earnings reports continue to roll in.
US shares tumbled Tuesday after Dutch tech giant ASML, which supplies chip-making machines to the semiconductor industry, cut its 2025 guidance and forecast a slump in orders.
Strong pre-market third-quarter results Wednesday from Morgan Stanley and United Airlines helped put a floor on the market, and in late morning trading the Dow and the wider S&P were up slightly, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq little changed as concerns lingered over chip makers.
"The sting from ASML is still there... but the chance to buy the dip in the market is right there for participants who have taken that chance many times before and won," said Patrick O'Hare, an analyst at Briefing.com.
Frankfurt and Paris closed lower, with London rising as a positive inflation report fed expectations of an interest rate cut next month from the Bank of England.
Oil prices kept sliding but at a slower pace than in previous days. The dollar inched higher against its main rivals.
ASML shares fell another five percent in Amsterdam Wednesday after plunging about 16 percent Tuesday following its update near the end of trading.
"ASML's warning has spooked investors holding anything linked to the semiconductor space," said Russ Mould, investment director at traders AJ Bell.
On Wall Street Wednesday, chip titan Nvidia and rival AMD were up slightly after both sank Tuesday. IT giant Intel was down almost two percent after losing more than three percent Tuesday.
United Airlines was up 11 percent and Morgan Stanley gained 7 percent on strong earnings reports.
In Paris, shares in Louis Vuitton-owner LVMH dropped more than four percent after the luxury heavyweight reported disappointing third-quarter results amid a slowdown in demand from Asia.
The announcement heightened investor concerns over a luxury sector heavily-reliant on China, said market strategist Patrick Munnelly at traders Tickmill Group.
The news "tempered the recent surge in luxury stocks subsequent to the announcement of Chinese stimulus plans", he added.
Gucci-owner Kering and Cartier-owner Richemont both fell more than one percent in their respective stock exchanges in Paris and Zurich.
Prada fell more than two percent in Milan as the sector struggles with weaker demand from China.
In London, the FTSE 100 rose after data showed UK inflation hit a three-year low in September, fuelling speculation that the Bank of England would resume cutting interest rates next month.
Earlier, Japan's stock market shed almost two percent, while Shanghai made small gains.
Hong Kong ended lower again even as developers were boosted after the city's chief executive unveiled some measures to help its struggling real estate industry.
Oil prices steadied initially Wednesday and then resumed sliding, though at a slower pace than Monday and Tuesday when they sank after a report that Israel had pledged not to strike Iran's energy infrastructure in retaliation for a missile barrage this month.
Adding to pressure on the commodity were worries over demand from top importer China, a report from the International Energy Agency saying global markets remain "adequately" supplied and relatively modest output losses from hurricanes in the US Gulf Coast.
- Key figures around 1540 GMT -
New York - Dow: UP 0.4 percent at 42,928.34 points
New York - S&P 500: UP 0.2 percent at 5,823.58
New York - Nasdaq Composite: DOWN LESS THAN 0.1 percent at 18,314.48
London - FTSE 100: UP 1.0 percent at 8,329.07 (close)
Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.4 percent at 7,492.00 (close)
Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.3 percent at 19,432.81 (close)
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.8 percent at 39,180.30 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.2 percent at 20,286.85 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 3,202.95 (close)
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0875 from $1.0892 on Tuesday
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3003 from $1.3066
Dollar/yen: UP at 149.66 yen from 149.22 yen
Euro/pound: UP at 83.64 pence from 83.33 pence
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.1 percent at $69.83 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.9 percent at $73.58 per barrel
P. Rasmussen--BTZ
