Stock market today: World shares mixed after China pledges more support for slowing economy
World shares are mixed after China pledged more spending to counter its economic slowdown
BANGKOK — World shares were mixed Wednesday after China pledged more spending to energize its economy.
Benchmarks fell in Paris, Frankfurt, Sydney and Seoul but rose in London, Tokyo and Hong Kong. U.S. futures were mixed and oil prices turned higher.
China plans to issue 1 trillion yuan ($139 billion) in government bonds to finance new construction and other projects as part of an effort to spur faster economy growth.
The aim is to drive more domestic spending and “further cement the recovery momentum of the Chinese economy,” the official Xinhua News Agency quoted Zhu Zhongming, a vice minister of finance as saying.
“This decision suggests a commitment to supporting economic growth and addressing fiscal challenges at various levels of government. It also hints at a potential future shift in China’s fiscal approach,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.
However, officials said the funds would not be channeled into China's ailing property sector, which has weighed heavily on growth as developers struggled to meet repayment obligations for massive debts while demand has weakened.
Chinese shares logged moderate gains on Wednesday, with Hong Kong's Hang Seng rising 0.6% to 17,085.33. The Shanghai Composite index added 0.4% to 2,974.11.
In early European trading, Germany's DAX fell 0.4% to 14,825.07 and the CAC 40 in Paris lost 0.5% to 6,864.02. London's FTSE 100 was up 0.1% at 7,384.58.
The future for the S&P 500 slipped 0.4% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged 0.1% higher. On Tuesday, the S&P 500 climbed 0.7% and the Dow gained 0.6%. The Nasdaq composite rose 0.9%.
In Asian trading
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