European, US Equities Defy Asian Slide 15 Oct 2018

European and US stock markets defied a downturn in Asia, following several days of market turbulence sparked by trade rows and a spat over the US central bank.

London, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th Oct, 2018 ) :European and US stock markets defied a downturn in Asia, following several days of market turbulence sparked by trade rows and a spat over the US central bank.

The drive higher came despite a cornucopia of risks, including higher oil prices from Saudi Arabia tensions -- and ongoing turmoil surrounding Brexit that briefly weighed on sterling.

"We've seen a positive session today but it's been slow going in the wake of a disappointing US retail sales report for September, and some concern that President Trump might look to impose further sanctions on Chinese goods in light of comments he made on US tv over the weekend," said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK.

Total US retail sales gained 0.1 percent in September to a seasonally-adjusted $509 billion, marking the eighth consecutive monthly increase, the Commerce Department said, which was much less than the 0.6 percent gain expected by analysts.

"In a sign that investors are starting to diversify out of stocks, the gold price has risen sharply in the last few days to its highest level since mid-July," added Hewson.

Gold hit $1,236.90 an ounce, with the precious metal profiting from its haven investment status.

London's FTSE 100 index ended the day with a gain of 0.5 percent, while the CAC 40 in Paris closed essentially flat.

The DAX 30 in Frankfurt meanwhile climbed 0.8 percent, despite the opening of trading being delayed by more than an hour owing to a technical hitch.

Wall Street was mostly higher approaching midday, with the Dow up 0.4 percent.

Saudi stocks made a partial comeback after days of heavy losses in economic fallout linked to political tensions over the disappearance of prominent journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

- Shock not over - In Asia, Japanese equities led the way lower, with the benchmark Nikkei 225 shedding almost two percent, in anticipation of an announcement from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of a two percentage-point hike in the sales tax.

Japanese stocks faced pressure also after US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said over the weekend that Washington wants to include a provision to prevent Currency manipulation in future trade deals with Tokyo.

Chinese stocks, which were the worst hit in last week's global rout, also tracked lower, with the benchmark Shanghai composite off 1.5 percent.

"We can't say the shock is over," said Masayuki Kubota, chief strategist at Rakuten Securities.

Last week saw a broad-based sell-off in global equities, prompted by fears of higher US interest rates, continued worries over US-China trade and attacks by President Donald Trump on the Federal Reserve, which he called "crazy".

Turning to commodities, oil prices continued to climb as traders fretted over US relations with its ally and the world's top oil producer Saudi Arabia.

Trump has warned of "severe punishment" if it is found that Khashoggi was murdered inside the Kingdom's consulate in Istanbul but Riyadh hit back immediately, saying it would retaliate.

Trump on Monday suggested that "rogue killers" could be to blame for the disappearance of Khashoggi and said that the oil-rich state's monarch emphatically denies involvement.

Geopolitical tensions surrounding Saudi Arabia battered shares in Japanese conglomerate Softbank, which has close financial ties to the Kingdom.

Softbank stock plunged more than seven percent in Tokyo, as Riyadh is heavily involved in the firm's massive technology investment fund.

- Key figures around 1530 GMT - New York - Dow Jones: UP 0.4 percent at 25,439.86 points London - FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 7,029.22 (close) Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.02 percent at 5,095.07 (close) Frankfurt - DAX 30: UP 0.8 percent at 11,614.16 (close) EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.6 percent at 3,214.08 Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.9 percent at 22,271.30 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng: DOWN 1.4 percent at 25,445.06 (close) Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 1.5 percent at 2,568.10 (close) Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1587 from $1.1560 at 2100 GMT Friday Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3147 from $1.3153 Dollar/yen: DOWN at 111.90 from 112.21 yenOil - Brent Crude: UP 24 cents at $80.67 per barrelOil - West Texas Intermediate: UP 27 cents at $71.61