Global Shares and Wall Street Indexes Rise as Inflation Rate Stays Steady
Global shares and Wall Street indexes rose on Wednesday as an in-line inflation reading kept intact bets on the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates later this month. The dollar hit a two-week high, and gold prices rose. Oil prices rose more than $1 after the European Union agreed to another round of sanctions threatening Russian oil. European shares recouped earlier losses to finish higher.
The S&P 500 rose 7.67 points, or 0.02%, to 44,255.50, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 55.17 points, or 0.91%, to 6,090.21. The Nasdaq composite rose 355.83 points, or 1.81%, to 20,043.07.
The Labor Department reported that the Consumer Price Index rose 0.3% on a monthly basis in November, matching the 0.3% increase forecast by economists. Annually, it stood at 2.7%, in line with estimates.
The European market rose 0.28%, while emerging market stocks fell 0.34%. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes rose 5.2 basis points to 4.273%, from 4.221% late on Tuesday.
The U.S. dollar, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, rose 0.34% to 106.71, with the euro down 0.35% at $1.0489. The Canadian dollar reversed earlier declines and rallied as the Bank of Canada cut interest rates by half a percentage point, as expected, but shifted to more hawkish guidance on prospects for additional easing.
Gold prices rose 0.93% to $2,718.70 an ounce, while U.S. gold prices rose 1.17% to $2,729.10 an ounce. Arabica coffee prices fell off a record peak as dealers worried that a drought would hurt output for top producer Brazil. Brent crude oil rose 2.6% to $70.37 a barrel, and West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1.91% to $73.57 per barrel.