World stock markets attempt rebound from rout

LONDON: Global stock markets attempted to rebound Friday, one day after ferocious losses sparked by heightened economic concerns, notably over rising US interest rates that have drawn attacks from President Donald Trump on his "crazy" central bank.

Wall Street stocks snapped higher at the opening bell, trying to recover from a two-day 1,300-point bloodbath that left it the lowest levels in months.

In late morning trading, the Dow was up 0.9 percent. The broader S&P 500 climbed 1.2 percent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite pushed 1.9 percent higher.

Asia enjoyed healthy gains, with star performer Hong Kong surging 2.1 percent, Shanghai up 0.9 percent and Tokyo adding 0.5 percent, at the end of a traumatic week for investors worldwide.

Europe initially chased Asia higher, but gave up gains as the closing bell approached. London and Paris ended the day down 0.2 percent, while Frankfurt gave up 0.1 percent.

The dollar recovered versus the euro and pound, while oil futures bounced back.

"US stocks are recovering solidly in early action from the past two sessions of drops that have come from the festering concerns regarding the pace of the recent rally in Treasury yields that spilled over to the global markets," said analysts at Charles Schwab brokerage.

Still the rebound was only partial, as the Dow was down 5 percent for the week after trading closed on Thursday.

"The brutal selloff that engulfed global stocks this week took a pause on Friday as risk sentiment slightly improved across financial markets," noted analyst Lukman Otunuga at trading firm FXTM.

"Although positive trade data from China and reports of US President Donald Trump meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit next month has rekindled risk appetite, stock markets are not out of the woods yet," he added.

- 'Absolute shocker of a week' -

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Analysts cautioned that the US earnings season -- which cranked into action Friday -- could indicate whether markets have bottomed out or not.

"Today's rebound appears to be offering a brief respite for investors at what has been an absolute shocker of a week," noted CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.

"While today's respite is welcome, it remains to be seen whether we have seen the bottom in the short term.

In the event US banks Citigroup, JP Morgan and Wells Fargo reported higher third-quarter earnings on Friday, reflecting the benefits of higher interest rates for the financial sector. Shares in Citigroup and Wells Fargo both rose, while those in JP Morgan slid in morning trading.

Friday's fightback followed two days that have seen something approaching panic in global equity markets, as investors took fright in the face of rising US interest rates and an intensifying trade war between Washington and Beijing.

The global sell-off was also due in part to Trump describing the policies of the US Federal Reserve as "loco" and "crazy", sparking concerns over the independence of the world's top central bank.

But US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Friday downplayed the stocks plunge in Wall Street, saying it was "just a natural correction", in an interview on CNBC.

Separately on Friday, oil prices rebounded from sharp losses a day earlier -- but gains were tempered after the International Energy Agency watchdog trimmed its global crude demand growth forecasts for 2018 and 2019.

- Key figures around 1530 GMT -

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New York - Dow Jones: UP 0.9 percent at 25,271.75 points

London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.2 percent at 6,995.91 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 5,095.98 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 0.1 percent at 11,523.81 (close)

EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.5 percent at 3,194.85

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.5 percent at 22,694.66 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng: UP 2.1 percent at 25,801.45 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.9 percent at 2,606.91 (close)

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1555 from $1.1593 at 2100 GMT on Thursday

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3179 from $1.3230

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 112.10 from 112.16 yen

Oil - Brent Crude: UP 25 cents at $80.51 per barrel

Oil - West Texas Intermediate: UP 62 cents at $71.59