Asia Mostly Up, Europe Mixed; Gold Gains As And Dollar Softens - Global Markets Today While US Slept

On Tuesday, September 17th, U.S. markets closed mixed, with stocks ending nearly flat after reaching record highs. Strong economic data alleviated slowdown concerns as investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s first anticipated rate cut in over four years, addressing potential economic weakness amid mixed job market signals.

According to economic data, U.S. retail sales rose 0.1% in August, beating expectations of a decline of 0.2%. The NAHB Housing Market Index increased to 41 in September, while business inventories grew 0.4% in July, exceeding the expected 0.3% rise.      

Most S&P 500 sectors rose on Tuesday, led by consumer discretionary, energy, and industrials, while healthcare and consumer staples closed lower.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.04% and closed at 41,606.18. The S&P 500 ended the day higher by 0.03% at 5,634.58, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.20%, finishing the session at 17,628.06.

Asian Markets Today

• On Wednesday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed the session higher by 0.37% at 36,338.50, led by gains in the Shipbuilding, Paper & Pulp, and Transportation Equipment sectors.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 ended the day higher by 0.01% at 8,142.10, led by gains in the Utilities, Energy, and Financials sectors.
• India’s Nifty 50 was down 0.23% at 25,360.75, and the Nifty 500 was down by 0.38% at 23,875.75.
• China’s Shanghai Composite closed higher by 0.49% at 2,717.28, and Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 was up 0.37% and ended the day at 3,171.01.  
• Hong Kong markets were closed for the Mid-Autumn Festival Holiday.

Eurozone at 05:30 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 index declined 0.35%.
• Germany’s DAX was lower by 0.10%.
• France’s CAC was down 0.37%.
• U.K.’s FTSE 100 index traded lower by 0.58%.

Commodities at 05:30 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading lower by 1.56% at $68.87/bbl, and Brent was down 1.52% at $72.56/bbl.
• Oil prices fell after two days of gains as U.S. crude and fuel inventories rose, offsetting Middle East tensions and the potential impacts of a U.S. interest rate cut.
• Natural Gas was down 0.43% at $2.314.
• Gold was trading higher by 0.14% at $2,595.75, Silver fell 0.26% to $30.898, and Copper rose 0.59% to $4.2980.

US Futures at 05:30 AM ET

Dow futures were up 0.12%, S&P 500 futures rose 0.10%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures gained 0.11%.

Forex at 05:30 AM ET

• The U.S. dollar index fell 0.14% to 100.75, the USD/JPY was down 0.49% to 141.72, and the USD/AUD declined 0.36% to 1.4746.
• The dollar gave up some of its overnight gains, especially against the yen, as traders reconsidered the chances of a big Federal Reserve rate cut. Strong U.S. retail sales data reduced the need for aggressive easing, while bond yields increased slightly.

Photo by Pavel Bobrovskiy via Shutterstock