Disappointment surrounding the more-than-expected increase in headline inflation in the U.S. disappeared as core inflation increased only on expected lines, reinforcing expectations of the Fed skipping a rate hike in September. Markets now await the interest rate decision by the European Central Bank as well as the updates on producer price inflation and retail sales from the U.S. due early on Thursday.
Wall Street Futures are trading in positive territory. European benchmarks are trading mostly lower. Asian stock markets had earlier finished trading on a positive note.
Dollar Index edged lower. Bond yields are moving mixed. Supply concerns continued to drive crude oil prices higher. Gold futures declined. Cryptocurrencies extended gains.
Here is a snapshot of world markets at this hour.
Stock Indexes:
DJIA (US30) at 34,604.10, up 0.08% S&P 500 (US500) at 4,476.60, up 0.21% Germany's DAX at 15,618.25, down 0.23% U.K.'s FTSE 100 at 7,555.47, up 0.39% France's CAC 40 at 7,203.02, down 0.27%Euro Stoxx 50 at 4,217.55, down 0.14%Japan's Nikkei 225 at 33,212.50, up 1.52% Australia's S&P ASX 200 at 7,186.50, up 0.46% China's Shanghai Composite at 3,126.55, up 0.11% Hong Kong's Hang Seng at 18,053.00, up 0.24%
Currencies:
EUR/USD at 1.0739, up 0.10%GBP/USD at 1.2485, down 0.02%USD/JPY at 147.32, down 0.08%AUD/USD at 0.6432, up 0.17%USD/CAD at 1.3535, down 0.08% Dollar Index at 104.71, down 0.05% Ten-Year Govt Bond Yields:
U.S. at 4.260%, up 0.28% Germany at 2.6530%, up 0.00%France at 3.194%, down 0.16%U.K. at 4.3960%, up 1.13%Japan at 0.698%, down 1.76% Commodities:
Brent Oil Futures (Nov) at $92.61, up 0.79%.Crude Oil WTI Futures (Oct) at $89.28, up 0.86%.Gold Futures (Dec) at $1,927.55, down 0.26%.
Cryptocurrencies:
Bitcoin at $26,320.41, up 1.43%Ethereum at $1,619.78, up 1.70%BNB at $211.84, up 0.35% XRP at $0.4824, up 1.32%Cardano (ADA) at $0.2478, up 0.44%
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April 17, 2026 15:29 ET The ongoing conflict in the Middle East continues to raise concerns for policymakers who worry about the impact of the supply shock and high energy prices on the real economy. Producer price data and various survey results on the housing market were the main news from the U.S. this week. In Europe, industrial production data for the euro area gained attention. GDP figures out of China and the policy move by the Singapore central bank were in focus in Asia.