BEIJING — Wall Street gained on strong corporate earnings, while Japanese exports fell.
London and Shanghai fell while Tokyo and Frankfurt grew. After five days of gains, Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index fell by 0.1%.
Jeffrey Halley, Oanda’s director of research, stated that “Market sentiment remains decisively positive”.
Investors waited for updates on inflation from Britain and other European countries amid concerns central banks may feel under pressure to raise interest rates earlier than expected or reduce stimulus.
The FTSE 100 in London fell 0.1% to 7,210.74 during early trading. Frankfurt’s DAX rose 0.2% to 15,552.62, while Paris’s CAC 40 fell less than 0.1% at 6,667.52.
Wall Street saw a decline in the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s future, which was less than 0.1%.
The S&P 500 rose 0.7% Tuesday to 0.4% below its Sept. 2 record. The Dow and Nasdaq composite both advanced by less than 0.1%.
After government data showed that September exports were down 3.9%, the Nikkei225 in Tokyo saw 0.1% growth to 29,255.55
Seoul’s Kospi fell 0.5% to 3,013.13, while Sydney’s S&P ASX 200 rose 0.5%, to 7,413.70.
India’s Sensex opened 0.4% lower at 61,469.75. New Zealand and Bangkok advanced, while Singapore fell.
Wall Street’s Tuesday gains were driven by tech and health-care stocks.
Johnson & Johnson, the largest manufacturer of health products, saw its stock rise 2.3% following strong quarterly earnings reports and an increase in its profit forecast for the year.
Apple Inc. rose 1.5%, and software maker Adobe gained 2.1%.
Investors are concerned that disruptions in manufacturing supply chains and shipping caused by the coronavirus pandemic could depress corporate profits and increase inflation.
Procter & Gamble lost 1.2% after announcing it would raise prices amid higher freight and commodity costs.
FactSet polled analysts and forecast earnings growth for the S&P 500 of 30%, up from 23% in June.
Rising energy prices raise concerns about an economic slowdown due to a shortage of fuel.
The Commerce Department also reported Tuesday that U.S. house construction declined 1.6% in September. Beazer Homes saw a 2.7% decline, and Hovnanian Enterprises saw a 3% decrease.
Energy markets saw benchmark U.S. crude oil lose 80 cents to $81.64 a barrel in electronic trading at the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, which is the price basis of international oils, fell 82 cents per barrel to $84.26 in London.
From Tuesday’s 114.31, the dollar rose to 114.35 Japanese yen. From $1.1640, the euro fell to $1.1628.
