Global stock markets and the dollar mostly firmed Monday as fresh hopes for a US interest-rate cut provided some calm after last week’s rollercoaster ride fuelled by worries of an AI tech bubble.”In a week that is stunted by the Thanksgiving celebrations, there is a degree of hope that perhaps the worst is behind us, and we can get into a more festive mood,” said Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at traders Scope Markets.Wall Street was marginally in the green around 15 minutes into the session at the start of a holiday-shortened week, as a cautious Dow added 0.1 percent while the tech-rich Nasdaq rose 1.4 percent. The broad-based S&P 500 was up 0.7 percent.Caution abounded in Europe as Frankfurt stood 0.5 percent ahead two hours out from the close despite German business sentiment falling more than expected in November, the latest sign that industry is losing faith in the government’s plans to revive the economy.London edged up 0.1 percent awaiting the UK government’s annual budget on Wednesday, while Paris stood off 0.2 percent.In Asia, Hong Kong closed up 2.0 percent and Tokyo was shut for a Japanese public holiday.The scramble to snap up all things artificial intelligence has helped propel equities skywards this year, pushing several companies to records — with chip titan Nvidia last month becoming the first company to top $5 trillion.Monday saw Nvidia shares off 0.5 percent in early trading.Investors have grown increasingly fearful that the vast sums pumped into tech may have been overdone and could take some time to see profits realised, leading to warnings of a possible market correction.That has been compounded in recent weeks by falling expectations the Federal Reserve will cut rates for a third successive time next month, as stubbornly high inflation overshadows weakness in the US labour market.However, risk appetite was given a much-needed shot in the arm Friday when New York Fed boss John Williams said he still sees “room for a further adjustment” at the bank’s December 9-10 policy meeting.His comments came a day after figures showed that while more jobs were created in September, the unemployment rate crept to its highest level since 2021.Focus is now on the release this week of the US producer price index (PPI), one of the last major data points before officials gather, with other key reports postponed or missed because of the recent government shutdown.”The reading carries heightened importance following the postponement of October’s personal consumption expenditures report, originally scheduled for 26 November, which removes a key datapoint from policymakers’ assessment framework,” wrote IG market analyst Fabien Yip.”A substantially stronger-than-expected PPI outcome could reinforce concerns that inflationary pressures remain entrenched, potentially constraining the Fed’s capacity to reduce rates in December despite recent labour market softening.”- Key figures at around 1445 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 0.1 percent at 46,269.74 pointsNew York – S&P 500: UP 0.7 percent at 6,647.79New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 1.4 percent at 22,586.64London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 9,545.03 pointsParis – CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 7,964.39Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.5 percent at 23,217.39Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 2.0 percent at 25,716.50 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 3,836.77 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: Closed for a holidayEuro/dollar: UP at $1.1535 from $1.1519 on FridayPound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3092 from $1.3107Dollar/yen: UP at 157.09 yen from 156.39 yenEuro/pound: UP at 88.11 pence from 87.88 penceBrent North Sea Crude: FLAT at $62.58 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: FLAT at $58.08 per barrel