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TOKYO (AP) — European stocks were mostly lower early Friday, but Asian benchmarks rose as U.S. stocks rose to record levels.
France’s CAC40 rose less than 0.1% to 8,019.83 in early trading, while Germany’s DAX fell 0.1% to 17,823.36. Britain’s FTSE 100 index fell nearly 0.2% to 7,680.05. US stocks were mixed within a narrow range, with Dow futures down less than 0.1% to 38,813.00. S&P 500 futures rose less than 0.1% to 5,166.25.
In Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.2% to end at 39,688.94. Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.1% to 7,847.00. South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.2% to 2,680.35. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.8% to 16,353.39, while the Shanghai Composite recovered early losses and rose 0.6% to 3,046.02.
Economic indicators in regions such as China remained relatively positive, but investors remained cautious. For example, in Japan, interest rates are expected to rise if the economy recovers.
“This is due to reports that (Bank of Japan) officials are becoming more confident about wage growth as workers’ cash income has exceeded that of workers,” said Tan Boon Heng of Mizuho Bank in Singapore.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said in testimony on Capitol Hill that the central bank is “not far away” from cutting interest rates, which Wall Street desperately needs. He reiterated that the Fed is just waiting for more data to confirm that inflation is cooling.
This is a key point on Wall Street, with traders now seeing June as the most likely starting point after initially shelving hopes for a March rate cut. The Fed’s key interest rate is at its highest level since 2001.
After coming under fire for taking too long to raise rates at a time when inflation is accelerating, Mr. Powell was questioned by the Senate Banking Committee about the possibility of cutting rates too slowly. That would cause undue pain because high interest rates slow the economy.
Across the Atlantic, traders are also trying to guess when the European Central Bank will start cutting interest rates after the head of the European Central Bank said it was making progress in curbing inflation.
The potentially influential report will be released Friday morning, when the U.S. government releases its latest monthly update on the job market. Traders are hopeful that the job market remains healthy, but not enough to deter the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates.
In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude oil rose 77 cents to $79.70 a barrel. Brent crude oil, the international standard, rose 64 cents to $83.60 a barrel.
In foreign exchange trading, the dollar rose from 147.90 yen to 147.92 yen. The euro fell to $1.0935 from $1.0951.
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