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Wall Street gains as oil prices reverse

Wall Street indexes rose Wednesday on the back of a largely positive corporate earnings report. U.S. yields were also up, but European shares ended flat, ending a two-day streak of gains. U.S. president Donald Trump has issued an executive directive imposing a 25% additional tariff on Indian goods, claiming that the country imported Russian oil. The oil prices fell after U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio said that a decision would be made later Wednesday about possible sanctions against Russia for its war in Ukraine.

The MSCI index of global stocks rose by 0.72%, to 939.4.

Wall Street saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average rise 0.32% to 44,549.5, the S&P 500 gain 0.76% at 6,347.26 while the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.16% at 21,160.02.

Earnings have a mixed response. "Earnings are seeing a mixed reaction.

The STOXX 600 Index in Europe closed 0.06% down, with healthcare stocks dragging it down after Trump announced his tariff plan for pharmaceuticals.

The MSCI broadest index for Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan fell by 0.08%, closing at 654.33, while Japan’s Nikkei gained 0.60%, reaching 40794.86. Wall Street's performance on Tuesday was impacted by the health of the U.S. Economy. Data showed that services sector activity had unexpectedly stagnated in July. This reinforced the message of Friday's weak jobs data which led markets to increase their bets that the Federal Reserve would cut rates in September.

Samy Chaar is the chief economist of Lombard Odier. He said that there's a tug-of war between the concrete signs we have seen showing that the U.S. economic slowdown and the fact that rates are going down, which will remove some pressure on valuations.

The focus of traders has been on the tariff impact.

"The market seems to be more concerned with the fact we won't get maximalist tariffs. But I wonder if they aren't paying enough attention to the fact we could still see more moderate tariffs in the future, such as on pharmaceuticals," Chaar said. Trump said on Tuesday that he will announce tariffs on chips and semiconductors in the coming week. The U.S. will initially impose a'small tariff' on pharmaceutical imports, before increasing the tariff substantially over the next year or two. He said that the U.S. and China were close to a deal, and he planned to meet with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping by the end of this year if a deal was reached. Brazil has requested consultations at the World Trade Organization regarding U.S. Tariffs. Treasury yields have gained on the government bond markets. The yield on the benchmark U.S. 10 year notes increased 4.2 basis points from late Tuesday to 4.238%.

FedWatch from the CME shows that Fed funds futures indicate a 94% probability of a rate reduction next month. At least two cuts are priced in this year. Investors await Trump's choice to fill the upcoming vacancy on Fed board of Governors. Trump announced that a decision would be made shortly, but ruled out Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is currently the Fed's chief and whose tenure ends in 2026.

The euro rose by 0.71% to $1.1656.

The dollar index fell by 0.53%, to 98.20, measuring the greenback in relation to a basket including the yen, the euro and other currencies.

Brent oil futures fell by 0.95%, to $67 per barrel. U.S. crude dropped 1.14%, to $64.43.

Gold prices dropped 0.33%, to $3369.62 per ounce. U.S. Gold Futures were flat at $3433.4.

(source: Reuters)