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European Stocks Close Mostly Higher in Wednesday Trading as Investors Monitor Middle East Developments

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The European stock markets closed mostly higher in Wednesday trading as investors monitor negotiations over a possible end of the Middle East war between the US and Iran and reopening the Straight of Hormuz.

The Stoxx Europe gained 0.1%, the FTSE 100 rose 0.2%, France's CAC was modestly lower, the Swiss Market Index advanced 0.7%, while Germany's DAX was off 0.1%.

In corporate news, Banco Santander and Webster Financial have received US Federal Reserve approval for their proposed deal under which Banco Santander will acquire Webster, the companies said Tuesday.

The deal is expected to close Aug. 20.

Shares of the Spanish bank increased 0.8% in Madrid.

AstraZeneca and Bristol Myers Squibb are not engaged in discussions over a potential merger, Reuters reported Wednesday, citing a senior source close to the matter.

"There is no deal between AstraZeneca and BMS. There never was a deal to be done, and there are no discussions between the companies," the source told Reuters.

Shares of AstraZeneca rose more than 3% in London.

Novo Nordisk said Wednesday it won a preliminary injunction in the Netherlands against Ceban Ziekenhuisfarmacie B.V. in a patent-infringement case involving its compounded semaglutide nasal spray.

The District Court of The Hague ordered Ceban to stop selling the nasal spray immediately, noting that Ceban infringed Novo Nordisk's supplementary protection certificate covering semaglutide, Novo said.

Shares of the Danish pharmaceutical company fell 4.3% in Copenhagen.

Ryanair said Wednesday that July traffic reached 22.2 million guests, up 7% from a year earlier. The airline operated more than 120,800 flights last month, it said.

Shares of Ryanair gained 0.6% in Dublin.

HSBC has launched cash tender offers for four series of senior unsecured notes with an aggregate purchase price of up to $5 billion, the company said late Tuesday.

The offers cover company notes with a combined outstanding principal amount of $8.6 billion, HSBC said.

The tender offers are scheduled to expire Aug. 12, unless extended, the company said.

Shares of the British bank fell more than 4% in London.

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Update: S&P 500, Dow Scale New Peaks Amid Strong Earnings Flow, Strait of Hormuz Reopening Optimism

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Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$CAT$PLTR$SMH
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Update: Technology Helps Push US Equity Indexes Higher Amid Earnings, Iran Deal Optimism

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Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$CAT$PLTR$SMH
Asia Markets

Exchange-Traded Funds Rise as US Equities Advance After Midday

Broad Market IndicatorsBroad-market exchange-traded funds IWM and IVV were higher. Actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) added 3%.US equity indexes rose as earnings helped boost technology while a slide in crude oil and government bond yields reflected confidence that Iran is nearing a deal that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz.EnergyIShares US Energy ETF (IYE) and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) each lost 0.2%.TechnologyThe State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) gained 4.9%; iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) rose 3.9%, and iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) added 4.1%.The State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) was up 6.2%, and iShares Semiconductor (SOXX) jumped 6.8%.FinancialThe State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) rose 1%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) advanced 3%, and its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), declined 2.9%.CommoditiesCrude oil declined 5.2%, and the United States Oil Fund (USO) fell 4.9%. Natural gas shed 3.7%, and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) eased 3.5%.Gold on Comex added 1.4%, and the State Street SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) rose 1.2%. Silver gained 3.8%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was up 3.3%.ConsumerThe State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) rose fractionally. The Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) slipped less than 0.1%, and iShares Dow Jones US Consumer Goods (IYK) rose 0.1%.The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) rose fractionally. VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) dipped 0.2%, and the State Street SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) gained 1.2%.HealthcareThe State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) declined 0.1%, iShares US Healthcare (IYH) fell fractionally, and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) added 0.1%. IShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was up 1.6%.IndustrialThe State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) rose 1.6%. Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) and iShares US Industrials (IYJ) were also higher.CryptocurrencyIn midday activity, bitcoin (BTC-USD) added 0.1%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, ProShares Bitcoin ETF (BITO) rose 0.4%, ProShares Ether ETF (EETH) was down 0.2%, and ProShares Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) was 1.4% higher.

Dow Jones^EEM^EXI^FAS^FAZ^GLD^IBB^IGM^IGV^IPK^IVV^IWMNasdaq Composite^IYE^IYH^IYJ^IYK^IYW^PMR^QQQ^RTH^SOXXS&P 500^SPY^UNG^USO^VDC^VHT^VIS^XLE^XLF^XLI^XLK^XLP^XLV^XRT^XSD$BETH$BITO$EETH