London (AFP) – European equities rose Friday as investors digested bright tech earnings and awaited key US jobs data.
New York had rebounded on Thursday as shares in US tech titans rose, reversing a selloff that had been sparked by the Fed dousing hopes of an imminent reduction in borrowing costs.
Meta and Amazon blew through expectations in their latest quarterly results as Big Tech continued to impress.
Meta, the tech titan behind Facebook and Instagram, reported a profit of $14 billion in the final three months of last year, beating analyst forecasts as revenue climbed to $40.1 billion in the quarter.
Amazon also impressed investors with sales up to a more-than-expected $170 billion in the last quarter of last year, after a record-beating holiday season.
iPhone maker Apple meanwhile reported sales rose slightly in the final three months of 2023, but worries surrounding China cast a pall on the news.
– Upbeat end to week –
“European markets are enjoying an upbeat end to the week, with Amazon and Facebook earnings helping to drive a risk-on period,” said Scope Markets analyst Joshua Mahony.
“Today sees the US jobs report provide the final hurdle for traders to overcome, although the scope for any meaningful shift in market expectations from the Fed is questionable in the wake of Wednesday’s meeting.”
The NFP report will be under close scrutiny after Fed boss Jerome Powell suggested decision-makers could be swayed by a particularly big miss on key indicators.
Disappointment over the Fed’s warning was tempered by the knowledge that rates are all but certain to come down this year.
Data indicating a softening US labour market — jobless claims rose and private-sector jobs creation came in below forecasts — added to the optimism that the central bank will move several times before 2025.
While most market-watchers have slashed their bets on a reduction next month, Bloomberg News said around 150 basis points of easing this year is still priced into markets, with the first move fully priced in for May.
On the downside in Asia, Shanghai and Hong Kong fell with traders still worrying about the state of China’s economy and the lack of strong measures to provide stimulus.
The property sector is of particular concern, especially after the liquidation by a Hong Kong court this week of troubled developer Evergrande, which is wallowing under more than $300 billion in debt.
Analysts also pointed to traders selling before the Lunar New Year break.
– Key figures around 1130 GMT –
London – FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 7,638.13 points
Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.4 percent at 7,621.82
Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.7 percent at 16,969.12
EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.6 percent at 4,665.80
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.4 percent at 36,158.02 (close)
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.2 percent at 15,533.56 (close)
Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.5 percent at 2,730.15 (close)
New York – Dow: UP 1.0 percent at 38,519.84 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0885 from $1.0874 on Thursday
Dollar/yen: UP at 146.58 yen from 146.42 yen
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2765 from $1.2746
Euro/pound: DOWN at 85.28 pence from 85.29 pence
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.6 percent at $74.24 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.5 percent at $79.11 per barrel
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