World News | Stock Market Today: Global stocks mixed on worries about China, U.S. economy

TOKYO, May 17 (AP) Global stock markets were mixed on Wednesday, as Japan’s benchmark rose on solid economic growth data, while the rest of Asia was mired in uncertainty.

In Europe, France’s CAC 40 fell nearly 0.1% to 7,399.51 in early trade, while Germany’s DAX rose 0.3% to 15,950.96.

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Britain’s FTSE 100 edged up, up less than 0.1% to 7,755.25. U.S. stocks were set to move higher, with Dow futures up 0.3% to 33,150.00. S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% to 4,132.00.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 0.8 percent to close at 30,093.59. Australia’s S and P/ASX 200 fell 0.5% to 7,199.20 after a better-than-expected report on wage growth.

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The wage price index rose 3.7% year-on-year. But that could mean rate hikes in the coming months, according to some analysts.

South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.6 percent to 2,494.66 points. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 2.1 percent to 19,560.57 points, while the Shanghai Composite lost 0.2 percent to 3,284.23 points.

Encouraging GDP data from Japan earlier in the day showed consumption rebounding after easing COVID-19-related restrictions and opening borders to tourists.

Japan’s economy, the world’s third-largest, grew at an annual rate of 1.6% in the quarter ended March, according to the Cabinet Office. It was the strongest pace of GDP growth since the April-June 2022 expansion of 1.1%.

The main negative factor comes from lower exports due to sluggish global demand.

“Weak external demand remains a concern in the near term,” said Harumi Taguchi, chief economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, adding that growth is likely to slow gradually.

“With workers’ real compensation falling at a faster rate, declining purchasing power will continue to make consumers selective,” she said.

Concerns about the Chinese and U.S. economies weighed on investor sentiment. Oil prices fell.

“Recent Chinese economic data pointing to a slower-than-expected recovery, below consensus expectations, has exacerbated these concerns. Despite a rebound in consumer spending, concerns are growing that much of China’s recovery may already be in the rear-view mirror, ’ said ActivTrades’ Anderson Alves.

In the U.S., large retailers such as Target and Walmart are due to report results later this week.

They’re under the microscope because resilient spending by U.S. households has been one of the main positives keeping the economy from falling into recession.

If it fails, a recession is inevitable.

The pressure is mounting as shopper confidence indicators have been falling. Manufacturing and other parts of the economy are already collapsing under the weight of high interest rates aimed at keeping inflation down.

In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude fell 13 cents to $70.73 a barrel. International standard Brent crude oil edged down 18 cents to $74.73 a barrel.

In currency trading, the dollar inched up to 137.00 yen from 136.36 yen. The euro traded at $1.0839, down from $1.0868. (Associated Press)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)