Stocks, US yields edge up ahead of Fed minutes

By Chuck Mikolajczak

NEW YORK (Reuters) -A gauge of global stocks rose slightly on Wednesday, while U.S. Treasury yields mostly edged higher, as investors awaited minutes from the Federal Reserve's September meeting and inflation data for clues on the central bank's interest rate path.

Minutes from the meeting, in which the Fed reduced rates by 50 basis points (bps) and started its cutting cycle, are due at 2:00 p.m. ET (1800 GMT).

U.S. stocks rose modestly in early trading, but gains were curbed by a 1.5% fall in Google-parent Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL )'s shares after the U.S. Department of Justice said it may ask a judge to force the company to divest parts of its business.

"(This is) just a reflection of how super-sized Big Tech has become. Any uncertainty there will feature into the rest of the market," said Ben Laidler, head of equity strategy at Bradesco BBI.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 137.19 points, or 0.33%, to 42,217.56, the S&P 500 advanced 10.24 points, or 0.18%, to 5,761.57 and the Nasdaq Composite edged up 13.17 points, or 0.07%, to 18,196.09.

Investors have dialed back expectations for aggressive rate cuts by the Fed after last week's strong U.S. jobs report. They will also monitor inflation data on Thursday in the form of the consumer price index (CPI) for insight on the Fed's rate path.

After completely pricing in a cut of at least 25 bps last week, with a 35.2% chance of a second consecutive cut of 50 bps, the market is betting on an 84.1% chance of a 25 basis point cut at the Fed's November meeting, and a 15.9% chance it will hold rates steady, CME's FedWatch Tool showed.

Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Lorie Logan said she supported last month's outsized rate cut but wants smaller reductions ahead, given "still real" upside risks to inflation and "meaningful uncertainties" over the economic outlook.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe rose 0.34 points, or 0.04%, to 845.12. In Europe, the STOXX 600 index rose 0.47%, buoyed in part by defensive stocks such as utilities over uncertainty around China's stimulus plans.

China's stock rally short-circuited, with both the Shanghai Composite index and CSI300 index suffering their biggest one-day percentage drops since February 2020.

China's main information office said the finance ministry will detail plans on fiscal stimulus to boost the economy at a news conference on Saturday.

U.S. yields edged higher in the wake of Logan's comments. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes rose 0.4 basis point to 4.039% while the 2-year note yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations, rose 1.1 basis points to 3.99%.

The 10-year yield topped 4% for the first time in two months earlier in the week.

The dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, rose 0.36% to 102.86, with the euro down 0.36% at $1.0941.

Against the Japanese yen, the dollar strengthened 0.63% to 149.13. Sterling weakened 0.3% to $1.3067.

The New Zealand dollar weakened 1.38% versus the greenback to $0.6053 after the central bank cut interest rates by 50 basis points and left the door open to more.



Crude prices slumped for a second straight session, as weak demand and rising U.S. inventories countered the risk of supply disruption from conflict in the Middle East and Hurricane Milton in the United States.

U.S. crude fell 1.75% to $72.28 a barrel and Brent fell to $75.84 per barrel, down 1.74% on the day.

Source: Investing.com