US stocks opened flat today with investors looking ahead to an impending monetary policy announcement by the Federal Reserve as it concludes a two-day meeting, although the central bank is not expected to make any major changes.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 4.55 points, or 0.03 percent, to 16,803.94, the S&P 500 gained 0.1 point, or 0.01 percent, to 1,942.09 and the Nasdaq Composite added 3.55 points, or 0.08 percent, to 4,340.79.
European stock markets in turn edged up to go back within reach of multi-year highs reached last week, with insurer Aegon rallying after announcing a share buyback programme.
However, gains on the stock markets were capped as investors awaited the end of the US Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting later in the day.
The Fed is widely expected to cut another $10 billion from its monthly bond purchases, while investors will also be watching for any comments on when the Fed will begin to raise interest rates and its outlook for the economy.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index was up by 0.2 percent at 1,390.59 points putting the index back in touching distance of a 6-1/2 year high of 1,398.65 points reached last week.
The euro zone’s blue-chip Euro STOXX 50 index also advanced by 0.3 percent to 3,285.28 points.
Aegon was the top performer, in percentage terms, on the FTSEurofirst 300 index.
Aegon rose 2.7 percent, which traders attributed to the company’s announcement late on Tuesday – after markets had closed – of a share buyback programme.
Shares in oil groups, such as Royal Dutch Shell and BP, also rose as the Brent crude price advanced towards $114 a barrel as Sunni militants pushed forward in northern Iraq, striking a key refinery near Baghdad and stoking worries about oil exports from the key producer.
Credit Suisse strategists upgraded their position on the global energy equity sector to «benchmark» for the first time in six years, citing expectations of a rise in the oil price and improving corporate earnings in the sector.
Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei share average rose to a 1 1/2-week high as the yen weakened on strong US consumer prices data, while financial stocks tracked the performances of their US counterparts.
The Nikkei rose 0.9 percent to 15,115.80, the highest closing level since June 9. The broader Topix gained 0.9 percent to 1,249.15, while the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 advanced 0.8 percent to 11,365.37.
Source: Buenos Aires Herald