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European Stocks Trend Lower in Wednesday Trading as Strait of Hormuz Remains Closed

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European stock markets were tracking lower and oil prices surged in Wednesday trading as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, despite President Trump indefinitely extended a ceasefire with Iran.

The Stoxx Europe was declining 0.4%, Germany's DAX was down 0.3%, the FTSE 100 was edging 0.2% lower, France's CAC was falling 0.9%, and the Swiss Market Index was off 0.5%.

In the UK, the annual consumer prices index rose 3.3% in March, up from 3.0% in February, which matched analyst expectations, according to Bloomberg. On a monthly basis, the CPI rose 0.7%, up from 0.4% in February, and ahead of the 0.6% expected by analysts polled by Bloomberg.

And in corporate news, T-Mobile's largest shareholder, Deutsche Telekom, is mulling a full combination with the US-based carrier in what would be the largest-ever public M&A deal, Bloomberg reported Tuesday, citing people with knowledge of the matter.

The German carrier, which owns a 53% stake in T-Mobile, has been considering creating a new holding company that would make a stock bid for shares of both companies, the report said.

T-Mobile and Deutsche Telekom declined to comment to.

Shares of the German telecommunications operator were falling 4.6% in Frankfurt.

HSBC has shortlisted Allianz, Daiichi Life Group, and Sumitomo Life Insurance as potential buyers of its Singapore insurance business, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The firms are working with advisers to prepare binding bids for HSBC Life Singapore in the coming weeks, the unnamed sources told the news outlet, adding that HSBC could seek a valuation of up to $2 billion for the business.

A spokesperson from HSBC toldthat the company "declines to comment on market speculation" and that its HSBC Life Singapore unit remains under a strategic review. Allianz declined to comment, while Daiichi, and Sumitomo didn't immediately respond to requests for statements.

Shares of the British bank were off 0.5% in London.

ASML's capacity and productivity improvements should prevent it from becoming a bottleneck for the chip industry, as it was in recent years, Reuters reported Wednesday, citing Chief Executive Christophe Fouquet.

"Customers will be strongly tempted to look at other suppliers and potentially at alternatives to our technology; we have seen that in the past," Fouquet said at the chip maker's annual meeting Wednesday in Veldhoven, Netherlands, according to the report.

Shares of ASML were up 0.6% in Amsterdam.

BHP Group said Wednesday its fiscal Q3 copper output decreased by 7% year on year to 476,800 tonnes, while iron ore production rose by 2% to 62.1 million tonnes.

For fiscal 2026, the company said it continues to expect copper production of 1.9 million tonnes to 2 million tonnes, and iron ore production of 258 million tonnes to 269 million tonnes.

Shares of the mining company were rising more than 2% in London.

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US Equity Indexes Fall as Vance's Trip to Pakistan on Hold Ahead of Iran Ceasefire Deadline

US equity indexes fell on Tuesday, while crude oil futures jumped as President Donald Trump reportedly extended the Iran ceasefire deal until Tehran submits a "unified proposal" to end the war.The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3% to 24,334.81, with the S&P 500 down 0.6% to 7,064.01 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lower by 0.6% to 49,149.38. All three gauges traded higher earlier in the session. All sectors except energy fell. Real estate, utilities, and industrials led the decliners.Trump said he has extended the ceasefire until Tehran submits a proposal to end the conflict permanently, CNN reported late Tuesday. The ceasefire was due to expire on Wednesday evening ET. Trump said he will continue the US blockade of Iranian ports.Trump said the extension was warranted as Tehran's government is "seriously fractured," CNBC reported.Vice President JD Vance was set to leave Tuesday morning for Pakistan, the expected location for the US-Iran talks, but his trip has been put on hold, CNN reported. The US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has contributed to the ongoing uncertainty surrounding a second round of talks, CNN cited sources as saying.West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures climbed 2.8% to $92.13, and Brent crude futures advanced 1.6% to $96.98.Most US Treasury yields rose, with the 10-year up 4.8 basis points to 4.3% and the two-year climbed 6.9 basis points to 3.79%.Gold futures declined 2.3% to $4,718.1 and silver futures dropped 4.7% to $76.28.In economic news, US retail sales rose 1.7% in March, above the 1.4% increase expected in a Bloomberg-compiled survey and following the previous month's revised 0.7% gain. Removing both motor vehicles and a 15.5% surge in gasoline station sales, retail sales were up 0.6% in March, the same as in February.Pending home sales rose by 1.5% in March, above the 0.5% increase expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg and following a 2.5% increase in February, according to the National Association of Realtors. The monthly sales index was down 1.1% from March 2025.In company news, UnitedHealth Group (UNH) raised its full-year earnings outlook on Tuesday, as the health insurance giant recorded an unexpected annual increase in its Q1 results. Shares jumped 7%, among the top gainers on the S&P 500 and the Dow.D.R. Horton's (DHI) fiscal Q2 results came in better than expected, although the homebuilder tempered its full-year revenue outlook. Shares advanced 5.8%, among the S&P 500's outperformers.Moody's (MCO) said Tuesday that it is deepening its partnership with Microsoft (MSFT) by embedding its credit intelligence into Microsoft 365 Copilot and other AI-driven enterprise tools, expanding its presence across financial workflows. Shares of Microsoft rose 1.5%, among the Dow's leaders.Apple (AAPL) shares fell 2.5%, among the Dow's laggards, a day after the company said that Tim Cook will become executive chairman after a nearly 15-year stint as chief executive officer, effective Sept 1.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$AAPL$DHI$MCO$MSFT$UNH
Asia Markets

Exchange-Traded Funds Fall as US Equities Decline After Midday

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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
Asia Markets

US Equity Indexes Slip as Investors Await Fate of Iran Peace Talks in Pakistan

US equity indexes gave up intraday gains as crude oil futures gathered momentum after midday Tuesday, amid a fast-approaching deadline for Washington and Tehran to find a deal in the second round of talks in Pakistan.The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3% to 24,339.8, with the S&P 500 down 0.3% to 7,087.2 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lower by 0.2% to 49,370.3. All three gauges traded higher earlier in the session alongside corporate results.All sectors except consumer discretionary and energy fell, with real estate and industrials leading the decliners.President Donald Trump told CNBC on Tuesday that he expects the US and Iran to make a "great deal," referring to the proposed second round of talks in Islamabad that Iran has yet to confirm it will attend. The president added, however, that the US military is "ready" to bomb Iran if a deal is not signed by the ceasefire deadline late Wednesday and that he does not want to extend it.Iran has told regional mediators it would send a negotiating team to Islamabad on Tuesday, people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal. But Tehran hasn't publicly confirmed it will send representatives, and Iran's top negotiator said, "We do not accept negotiations under the shadow of threats."West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures climbed 4.3% to $93.50, and Brent crude futures advanced 2.8% to $98.17.Most US Treasury yields rose, with the 10-year up 4.8 basis points to 4.3% and the two-year climbing 6.5 basis points to 3.78%.Gold futures declined 1.1% to $4,775.6 and silver futures dropped 2.4% to $78.15.In economic news, US retail sales rose 1.7% in March, above the 1.4% increase expected in a Bloomberg-compiled survey and following the previous month's revised 0.7% gain. Removing both motor vehicles and a 15.5% surge in gasoline station sales, retail sales were up 0.6% in March, the same as in February.Pending home sales rose by 1.5% in March, above the 0.5% increase expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg and following a 2.5% increase in February, according to the National Association of Realtors. The monthly sales index was down 1.1% from March 2025.In company news, UnitedHealth Group (UNH) raised its full-year earnings outlook on Tuesday, as the health insurance giant recorded an unexpected annual increase in its Q1 results. Shares jumped 7.6%, the top gainer on the S&P 500 and the Dow.D.R. Horton's (DHI) fiscal Q2 results came in better than expected, although the homebuilder tempered its full-year revenue outlook. Shares advanced 7.1%, among the S&P 500's outperformers.Moody's (MCO) said Tuesday that it is deepening its partnership with Microsoft (MSFT) by embedding its credit intelligence into Microsoft 365 Copilot and other AI-driven enterprise tools, expanding its presence across financial workflows. Shares of Microsoft rose 1.4%, among the Dow's leaders.Apple (AAPL) shares fell 1.5%, among the Dow's laggards, a day after the company said that Tim Cook will become executive chairman after a nearly 15-year stint as chief executive officer, effective Sept 1.

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