Global equity markets edged higher as US services sector data that showed a pickup in growth was offset by a weaker-than-expected US private jobs report, while gold prices firmed.
The mixed data left investors uncertain over the pace of the US recovery and Wall Street stocks lower, adding to a recent slide that investors speculate could be part of a long-awaited correction.
Markets have been volatile in recent weeks on concerns about demand and turmoil in emerging market currencies.
Calmer markets in vulnerable emerging nations like Turkey, South Africa and Russia helped to offset some of the market jitters, along with Markit’s euro zone Composite PMI, which showed the 18-member bloc’s recovery becoming increasingly broad-based.
The Dow Jones industrial average was off its lows, down 7.35 points, or 0.05 percent, at 15,437.89. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was down 4.07 points, or 0.23 percent, at 1,751.13. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 17.69 points, or 0.44 percent, at 4,013.83.
A global equity index was up 0.1 percent, as was an index of European shares. MSCI’s emerging markets index was down just 0.15 percent.
Benchmark 10-year Treasuries yields were just above 2.65 percent, after falling from more than 3 percent at the beginning of the year as investors flee emerging market assets and stocks tumble, increasing the safe-haven demand for US government debt. The 10-year US Treasury note was down 11/32 in price, the yield at 2.6639 percent.
In the foreign exchange market, a dollar index briefly rose to session highs after the ISM data. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies, touched a session high of 81.240 before slipping back into negative territory at 81.054, down 0.08 percent on the day.
Spot gold rose as much as 1.5 percent to a session high of $1,273.26 an ounce after the US data. It was last up 0.3 percent at $1,257.80.
Oil prices edged higher. A US industry report showed lower inventories and robust heating fuel demand due to cold weather in the United States.
The American Petroleum Institute’s report on Tuesday showed crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, hub fell by 1.6 million barrels last week and distillates by 1.5 million barrels. Distillates include heating oil.
Brent crude was up 45 cents at $106.23 and US crude was up 14 cents to $97.33.
Upbeat economic data helped European shares break a three-day run of losses, offsetting some unconvincing company earnings and jitters about emerging markets.
Overnight trading in Asia had been mixed despite a rebound on Wall Street, but January purchasing manager index data helped settle European nerves before the European Central Bank’s monthly meeting on Thursday.
The pan-regional FTSEurofirst 300 was up 0.4 percent after the data. Outperforming Italy, Spain and Portugal bolstered gains of 0.4, 0.3 and 0.2 percent in London, Paris and Frankfurt.
The Nikkei average rose 1.2 percent in a volatile session today, rebounding from a four-month low as investors scooped up recently battered stocks such as Panasonic and Toyota Motor following strong earnings reports.
The Nikkei ended 171.91 points higher at 14,180.38 after briefly dropping to 13,995.86 in afternoon trade, the lowest intraday level since Oct. 8.
Source: Buenos Aires Herald