The National Times - US stocks wobble as traders weigh future Fed cuts

Bitcoin dipped below $90,000 level after striking a record of $93,462 on Wednesday.

Observers are expecting it to soon top $100,000 following pro-crypto pledges from the US president-elect.

Investors were looking to a speech later Thursday by US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell for indications about future interest rate cuts.

"Powell will likely face questions about the latest inflation data and the potential effects of protectionist policies under Trump, on the central's monetary policy in 2025," said City Index and FOREX.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada.

"If Powell refrains from directly linking these factors to Fed policy, it might dampen market worries (and) reduce rate hike expectations," he added.

US consumer inflation data released on Wednesday showed that consumer prices rose in line with forecasts, cementing expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates again next month.

But with Trump having vowed to impose across-the-board tariffs that could boost inflation and give the Fed reason to pause cutting interest rates.

"As things stand, the market is cautiously pricing in just 50 basis points of easing by mid-2025 -- a marked revision from before the US election" when it expected more cuts, added Razaqzada.

"The market, though, has a tendency of making its own mind up, and any dovish Powell remarks might fall on deaf ears."

Meanwhile data released on Thursday showed upticks in wholesale price inflation, which could also give the Fed reason to reevaluate the need to cut rates further.

"The higher interest rates, I think, are kind of acting as a headwind of sorts for the equity market right now," said Patrick O'Hare of Briefing.com.

Wall Street's main indices opened with modest gains, but then dipped lower and subsequently bobbed around.

European markets fared better, with updated data confirming the eurozone recorded 0.4 percent growth in the third quarter.

Tokyo, Hong Kong and Shanghai all fell on Thursday as concerns over another possible China-US trade war, and Beijing's economic woes, weighed on Asian markets.

The dollar advanced against its peers on the prospect that Trump's policies will keep the Fed from cutting interest rates as much as initially expected, but then turned lower against the euro and the pound.

The greenback topped 155 yen for the first time since July, putting focus on Japanese authorities who have said they are prepared to support their unit if they considered moves to be one-sided or speculative.

In company news, shares in Disney jumped more than 11 percent before paring gains after the entertainment giant beat expectations in its latest quarterly earnings.

While its net profits dipped, its earnings per share excluding exceptional items beat analyst expectations, as did a six percent increase in sales.

Shares in Meta were barely dented after the EU fined it almost 800 million euros ($840 million) on Thursday for breaching antitrust rules by giving users of its Facebook social network automatic access to classified ads service Facebook Marketplace. Meta said it would appeal the decision.

Shares in struggling British fashion house Burberry rose around 20 percent on London's FTSE 250 as the group announced cost-cutting plans after posting a loss.

- Key figures around 1630 GMT -

New York - Dow: FLAT at 43,954.02 points

New York - S&P 500: DOWN 0.1 percent at 5,979.15

New York - Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 0.2 percent at 19,200.47

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 8,071 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: UP 1.3 percent at 7,311.80 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 1.4 percent at 19,263.70 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.5 percent at 38,535.70 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 2.0 percent at 19,435.81 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 1.7 percent at 3,379.84 (close)

Dollar/yen: UP at 155.79 yen from 155.51 yen on Wednesday

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0578 from $1.0564

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2713 from $1.2710

Euro/pound: UP at 83.21 pence from 83.11 pence

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.5 percent at $68.77 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.5 percent at $72.64 per barrel

burs-rl/giv

F.Morgan--TNT