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Japanese shares fell but Chinese markets gained in a disjointed start to Asian trade on Friday, after Wall Street cheered strong results from electric car giant Tesla.Elon Musk’s company surged nearly 22 percent after higher earnings ended a streak of disappointing results and helped lift the Nasdaq and S&P 500, while the Dow was pulled lower by disappointing results from IBM and Honeywell.European indices rose overnight, with investors anticipating interest rate cuts, while oil prices climbed then fell in more volatile trade for the crude market.”US shares are somewhat mixed at the close” and “for a change, the US dollar has actually lost value”, said Phil Dobbie on National Australia Bank’s Morning Call podcast.US Treasury yields have pushed higher in recent days, although they retreated on Thursday. Uncertainty on trading floors is also heightened less than two weeks ahead of US elections, with the outcome still far from clear.Observers say some dealers are eyeing a win for Donald Trump and policies such as tax cuts that could stoke inflation.That, along with a strong run of US economic data and remarks from Federal Reserve officials backing a cautious approach to easing monetary policy, has seen expectations for rate cuts whittled back.In Asian trade on Friday morning, Tokyo stocks fell one percent, while Hong Kong rose 0.5 percent and Shanghai was up 0.2 percent. Taipei and Seoul were also higher, but Singapore, Bangkok and Jakarta lost ground. Sydney rose 0.2 percent while Wellington was flat.Inflation for Tokyo city slowed in October, data showed ahead of a national election on Sunday and a central bank policy decision on October 31.”The Bank of Japan meets next week, and we’ve been saying almost ad nauseam that the case for further normalisation of policy has been made,” National Australia Bank’s Ray Attrill said.The Tokyo inflation data means that “the Bank of Japan — its nose might be growing while it says it — could say, ‘look, there’s reason for us to be sitting on our hands a little bit longer’, irrespective of the view that the proximity to the elections has pretty much ruled out any move out at the October meeting”, Attrill added.- Key figures around 0200 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.0 percent at 37,770.93Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.5 percent at 20,595.30Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 3,285.44Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0823 from $1.0832 on ThursdayPound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2968 from $1.2972Dollar/yen: UP at 151.88 yen from 151.83 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.46 pence from 83.47 pence West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.3 percent at $70.40 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.3 percent at $74.60 per barrelNew York – Dow: DOWN 0.3 percent at 42,374.36 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 8,269.38 (close)

Wall Street stocks finished mostly higher Thursday as markets cheered strong results from Tesla and as US Treasury bond yields pulled back.Elon Musk’s electric vehicle company piled on nearly 22 percent after reporting higher earnings, ending a streak of disappointing results.Deutsche Bank called Tesla’s profit margins “impressive,” adding that Musk’s commentary on 2025 sales was also encouraging.While Tesla’s performance helped lift the Nasdaq and S&P 500, the Dow was pulled lower by disappointing results from IBM and Honeywell.Boeing meanwhile dropped 1.2 percent after a machinist union voted by almost two-thirds to reject the company’s latest contract offer, extending a nearly six-week strike.Analysts said the vote further clouds the company’s turnaround prospects under new CEO Kelly Ortberg.European indices rose, with investors anticipating interest rate cuts, while oil prices climbed then fell as the crude market continued to experience volatile trading.With the US presidential election still seen as a coin toss less than two weeks out, there was plenty of uncertainty on trading floors, though observers said some dealers were eyeing a win for Donald Trump and policies such as tax cuts that could stoke inflation again.That, along with a strong run of US economic data and remarks from Federal Reserve officials backing a cautious approach to easing monetary policy, has seen expectations for rate cuts whittled back.US Treasury yields have pushed higher in recent days, although they retreated somewhat on Thursday.The monetary policy outlook would appear different in Europe, where analysts are betting on the possibility of bumper rate cuts in the eurozone and Britain.This comes after Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said UK inflation was falling quicker than expected, and as eurozone economic data continues to weaken.Business activity in the single-currency bloc ticked lower for the second consecutive month in October, a closely watched survey showed Thursday.The HCOB Flash Eurozone purchasing managers’ index published by S&P Global registered a figure of 49.7 compared to 49.6 in September. Any reading above 50 indicates growth, while a figure below 50 shows contraction.The latest PMI data for Britain on Thursday showed its “economy struggled” at the start of the fourth quarter, said Kathleen Brooks, research director at traders XTB.- Key figures around 2050 GMT -New York – Dow: DOWN 0.3 percent at 42,374.36 (close)New York – S&P: UP 0.2 percent at 5,809.86 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.8 percent at 18,415.49 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 8,269.38 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.1 percent at 7,503.28 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.3 at 19,443.00 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.1 percent at 38,143.29 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.3 percent at 20,489.62 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.7 percent at 3,280.26 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0832 from $1.0782 on WednesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2972 from $1.2921Dollar/yen: DOWN at 151.83 yen from 152.76 yenEuro/pound: UP at 83.47 pence from 83.44 pence Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.8 percent at $74.38 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.8 percent at $70.19 per barrelburs-jmb/nro

Europe’s main stock markets rose solidly Thursday thanks to well-received earnings updates and the prospect of more regional cuts to interest rates.Major Asian indices closed mixed after sizeable losses on Wall Street Wednesday, with US Treasury yields climbing on concerns that inflation risked rising again.Oil prices jumped 1.5 percent as the crude market continued to experience volatile trading.”Higher oil prices and some good corporate results helped UK stocks to strong gains,” noted AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.London’s benchmark FTSE 100 index features oil giants BP and Shell.Shares in Barclays, meanwhile, gained 3.3 percent in midday deals after the bank said net profit increased 23 percent in the third quarter compared to one year earlier.In Paris, shares advanced in luxury goods group Hermes thanks to rising sales and amid hopes of a pickup in demand as China stimulates its economy.With the US presidential election still seen as a coin toss less than two weeks out, there was plenty of uncertainty on trading floors, though observers said dealers were eyeing a win for Donald Trump and policies such as tax cuts that could stoke inflation again.That, along with a strong run of US economic data and remarks from Federal Reserve officials backing a cautious approach to easing monetary policy, has seen expectations for rate cuts whittled back.Traders had previously been confident that the central bank would follow up last month’s bumper 50-basis-point cut with another at its November meeting and a smaller one in December.But those expectations have diminished, as seen with Treasury yields rising.The situation would appear different in Europe, where analysts are betting on the possibility of bumper rate cuts in the eurozone and Britain.This after Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey said UK inflation was falling quicker than it had expected, and as eurozone economic data continues to weaken.Business activity in the single currency bloc ticked lower for the second consecutive month in October, a closely watched survey showed Thursday.The HCOB Flash Eurozone purchasing managers’ index published by S&P Global registered a figure of 49.7 compared to 49.6 in September. Any reading above 50 indicates growth, while a figure below 50 shows contraction.The latest PMI data for Britain on Thursday showed its “economy struggled” at the start of the fourth quarter, said Kathleen Brooks, research director at traders XTB.Eyes will be on Tesla when Wall Street reopens after the electric carmaker reported a jump in profits late Wednesday.The company, led by Elon Musk, said third-quarter profit accelerated 17 percent to $2.2 billion from a year earlier.- Key figures around 1045 GMT -London – FTSE 100: UP 0.6 percent at 8,305.90 pointsParis – CAC 40: UP 0.8 percent at 7,556.00Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.7 at 19,504.40Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.1 percent at 38,143.29 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.3 percent at 20,489.62 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.7 percent at 3,280.26 (close)New York – Dow: DOWN 1.0 percent at 42,514.95 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0803 from $1.0787 on WednesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2972 from $1.2929Dollar/yen: DOWN at 151.87 yen from 152.65 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.27 pence from 83.41 pence Brent North Sea Crude: UP 1.5 percent at $76.10 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 1.5 percent at $71.86 per barrel

Taiwanese chipmaking giant TSMC halted shipments to a customer this month after its semiconductors were sent to China’s Huawei, a Taipei government official told AFP, potentially breaching US sanctions.Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company is the world’s largest contract manufacturer of chips used in everything from Apple iPhones to Nvidia’s cutting-edge artificial intelligence hardware.Huawei, the world’s leading equipment maker for fifth generation mobile internet networks, has been embroiled in a tech war between Beijing and Washington. The United States slapped sanctions on Huawei in 2019, and expanded them the following year, over fears its technology could be used for Beijing’s espionage operations. Huawei denies the allegations.The sanctions cut Huawei off from global supply chains that gave it access to the US-made components and technologies crucial to manufacturing powerful AI systems. The restrictions prevent TSMC from selling semiconductors to Huawei.But, TSMC discovered on October 11 that chips made for a “specific customer” had ended up with the Chinese company, a Taiwanese official with knowledge of the incident told AFP on the condition of anonymity.TSMC “immediately activated its export control procedures”, halting shipments to the customer and “proactively” notifying US and Taiwan authorities, the official said.In a statement on Wednesday, TSMC said it was a “law-abiding company” and had not supplied Huawei since mid-September 2020 in compliance with export controls. “We proactively communicated with the US Commerce Department regarding the matter in the report,” TSMC said, apparently referring to media reporting of the incident.”We are not aware of TSMC being the subject of any investigation at this time.”Taiwan’s economic ministry told AFP on Thursday that TSMC had informed them about the incident, but had not identified their client.”There was already an interaction and a contractual partnership in place, so it’s an old client,” the ministry said. They had been a client since before the 2020 deadline for companies to comply with the export controls, and “no shipments have been made since October 11”, it said.- Self-sufficiency -Bloomberg reported Tuesday that Canadian research firm TechInsights had found an advanced processor made by TSMC inside Huawei’s latest AI chip.Huawei did not respond to AFP’s request for comment.The company told Bloomberg that it hadn’t “produced any chips via TSMC after the implementation of the amendments made by the US Department of Commerce” to its trade restrictions targeting Huawei in 2020.The incident highlighted the lack of visibility into China’s domestic chip industry, said Chiang Min-yen, a non-resident fellow at the Research Institute for Democracy, Society, and Emerging Technology.”External parties lack sufficient information to understand which companies are actually under Huawei’s influence,” Chiang told AFP.In response to US export restrictions, Beijing has turbo-charged a drive for self-sufficiency in chips, with plans to pump billions of dollars into the sector.Huawei last year unveiled the Mate 60 Pro, a high-performance smartphone equipped with a chip that experts say would be impossible to produce without foreign technologies.That sparked debate about whether attempts to curb China’s technological advancements have been effective.

Asian markets mostly fell Thursday following steep losses on Wall Street as a spike in US Treasury yields led investors to scale back their expectations on interest rate cuts.With the US presidential election still seen as a coin toss less than two weeks out, there was plenty of uncertainty on trading floors, though observers said dealers were eyeing a win for Donald Trump and policies that could stoke inflation again.That, along with a strong run of economic data and remarks from Federal Reserve officials backing a cautious approach to easing monetary policy, has seen expectations for rate cuts whittled back.Traders had previously been confident that the central bank would follow up last month’s bumper 50-basis-point cut with another at its November meeting and a smaller one in December.But those expectations have diminished as Treasury yields push higher to 4.24 percent, compared with 3.73 percent in September.Observers said there is concern that a win for Trump over Democratic rival Kamala Harris could see him introduce tax cuts, ramp up trade tariffs and push for more deregulation.This has fuelled the so-called Trump trade, in which investors jockey for positions to prepare for such an eventuality.Sentiment has been “weighed down by the move up in yields and push back on Fed rate cut expectations”, said National Australia Bank’s Rodrigo Catril.”Solid economic momentum as well as Fed messaging emphasising a gradual and deliberate approach to further policy easing is making the market nervous,” he added. “Then once you add the upcoming US election alongside its associated uncertainty (higher or lower taxes?, more or less regulation?, new trade war?), taking some chips off the table makes sense.”All three main indexes on Wall Street finished well down, with the Nasdaq losing more than one percent.Hong Kong led the retreat in Asia, similarly shedding more than one percent, while Shanghai, Sydney, Seoul, Taipei, Bangkok, Mumbai, Jakarta and Manila were also lower.But Tokyo, Singapore and Wellington rose, along with London, Paris and Frankfurt.The dollar held gains after a drop in rate cut expectations pushed it up against its peers, bringing it to a near three-month high against the yen and a two-and-a-half-month high against sterling.Dealers will be keeping tabs on Tokyo ahead of next week’s Bank of Japan policy decision, which is expected to see it hold tight on borrowing costs, having hiked twice this year.Gold extended Wednesday’s drop from a record high as bonds offer better returns than the precious metal, which does not provide interest.And oil prices rose more than one percent, clawing back much of the previous day’s drop as dealers try to assess the demand outlook and the crisis in the Middle East amid fears about Israel’s plans to retaliate against Iran for this month’s missile attack.- Key figures around 0710 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.1 percent at 38,143.29 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.3 percent at 20,489.62 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.7 percent at 3,280.26 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.7 percent at 8,316.35Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0798 from $1.0787 on WednesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2968 from $1.2929Dollar/yen: DOWN at 152.21 yen from 152.65 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.25 pence from 83.41 pence West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.7 percent at $71.94 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 1.5 percent at $76.09 per barrelNew York – Dow: DOWN 1.0 percent at 42,514.95 (close)

French luxury group Hermes posted Thursday a jump in third quarter sales, bucking the overall gloom in the sector caused by falling sales in China.The luxury house, famous for its leather bags and silk scarves, saw overall sales rising 10 percent to 3.7 billion euros ($4.0 billion) in the July to September period.China is the world’s biggest spender in the luxury sector, accounting for half of global sales. But as its post-pandemic recovery falters, consumption has flagged, sending jitters through the industry.”Hermes stands out from other big groups” Hermes’ chief financial officer Eric du Halgouet told journalists.Its main competitors, the world’s top luxury group LVMH and Kering (Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent) have both reported falling third quarter sales, drops of 4.4 percent and 15 percent respectively.In Hermes’s greater China region, which includes Macao and Taiwan, the “there was no reversal in the trend” of sales growth, said du Halgouet.The greater Asia region, which excludes Japan, posted 0.6 percent quarterly growth “despite the downturn in traffic in Greater China observed since the end of the Chinese New Year, and a high base in the third quarter last year,” the company said in a statement.Du Halgouet said the drop in footfall in Chinese stores was being made up for in increased spending per client, in particular on jewellery, leather goods and ready-to-wear clothing. Hermes also recently opened a 1,000 square-metre (10,800 square-foot) boutique in Shenzen and has plans to open two others in Shenyang and Beijing.The luxury group saw double-digit sales gains in its other major markets, including an 11 percent rise in the Americas and 18 percent increases in Europe and Japan.Du Halgouet said that sales in these regions were continuing at the same tempo as the fourth quarter got underway in October.Sales of leather goods, Hermes’s top segment, rose by 12.7 percent to 1.57 billion euros.Clothing and accessories rose by 12.1 percent to 1.13 billion euros.While CEO Axel Dumas evoked last month in a Financial Times interview the possiblity of Hermes launching into haute couture, du Halgouet said it wasn’t a project for the company in the short term but which could be added to the group’s overall strategy.

While the outcome of next month’s US presidential election remains on a knife-edge, analysts say that for many in China the consequence is the same whoever emerges victorious: more tariffs, more tensions and a trade war that shows no sign of easing.Americans go to the polls on November 5 to choose between Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump, with polls suggesting the two are neck and neck.Governments around the world are hoping to avoid a return to the disruption that marked Trump’s term in office, but Beijing is readying for more bitter disputes over trade regardless of who sits in the White House.Both candidates have promised a harder line on China, the world’s second-largest economy and one of Washington’s biggest trading partners, to ensure the United States “wins” the great power competition.”A Harris administration would employ a scalpel, and a Trump administration a hammer,” said Thibault Denamiel, associate fellow at Washington’s Center for Strategic and International Studies.Beijing as a matter of principle does not comment on other countries’ elections, though it has said it opposes China being used as an issue on the campaign trail.During his time as president, Trump launched a gruelling trade war with China, imposing swingeing tariffs on Chinese goods for what he said were unfair practices by Beijing such as theft of US technology and currency manipulation.Tensions haven’t abated under his Democratic successor, Joe Biden, with relations at their lowest levels in decades and Washington putting sharp new tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, EV batteries and solar cells.And there is a sense of grim resignation that neither candidate will reverse that.”The United States used to be the champion of free trade,” Wang Dong of Peking University’s School of International Studies told AFP.Now, the country has thrown it “into the trash bin”.- America first -Harris’s campaign says  she “will make sure that America, not China, wins the competition for the 21st century”, noting that the Democrat has “stood up to China’s unfair economic practices”.Trump, in turn, built his political brand on the assertion that foreign countries — including China — have been taking advantage of the United States.While the former president has proposed a 10-20 percent tariff on all imports, he wants an even higher rate of 60 percent on Chinese goods.”A ratcheting up in protectionism following the US elections could trigger a major re-ordering of world trade,” wrote Adam Slater, Lead Economist at Oxford Economics.Trump’s tariff proposals “could slash US-China bilateral trade by 70 percent and cause hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of trade to be eliminated or redirected”, he wrote.In contrast, one analyst suggested a potential Harris administration could take a more “strategic and selective approach” to tariffs.”Harris would be in a better position to minimise any economic harm to the United States, while focusing on impacting China on products that matter,” Wendy Cutler, Vice President at the Asia Society Policy Institute, told AFP.- Art of the deal -Trump’s proposal could hit $500 billion worth of Chinese exports, analysis by asset managers PineBridge Investments suggested in August.But they also said Trump would likely use tariffs as a “negotiation tool”.The tycoon has made much of his reputation as a dealmaker and his rapport with autocratic leaders like President Xi Jinping.And in China, some online think Trump might be keen to improve ties. “That would be worth looking forward to,” one user on X-like Weibo wrote, predicting Trump would come to the negotiating table only after his tariffs caused an “economic crisis” in the United States.In a recent conversation at Beijing’s Tsinghua University, prominent international relations scholar Yan Xuetong said he expected Harris to intensify a downward spiral in ties.”Harris is more eager to maintain America’s dominance than Trump,” he said.”If Harris wins the election, the US-China political conflict will… increase.”Peking University’s Wang was just as sceptical of Trump.”For MAGA people, they probably couldn’t care less about America’s global leadership,” said Wang, referring to Trump’s signature call to “Make America Great Again.”To Wang, their message is clear: “‘Go to hell, internationalism'”.

Boeing workers in the Seattle region decisively rejected the company’s latest contract offer on Wednesday, extending the nearly six-week strike.Almost two-thirds (64 percent) of the members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 751 rejected the contract, the union said on X. The latest Boeing offer had included a 35 percent wage hike, but did not reinstate a pension plan sought by many employees.Some 33,000 hourly workers with the IAM have been on the picket lines since September 13, when workers overwhelmingly rejected a Boeing proposal for a new four-year contract to replace the expiring pact.Workers had sought a 40 percent wage increase to make up for years of tepid salary growth that have not kept pace with inflation and that employees complain leave them unable to afford living in one of the most costly regions of the United States.”After 10 years of sacrifices, we still have ground to make up, and we’re hopeful to do so by resuming negotiations promptly,” said Jon Holden, president of the Seattle union in a statement. “This is workplace democracy –- and also clear evidence that there are consequences when a company mistreats its workers year after year,” Holden said. “Ten years of holding workers back unfortunately cannot be undone quickly or easily, but we will continue to negotiate in good faith until we have made gains that workers feel adequately make up for what the company took from them in the past,” he added.The extension of the strike adds to the troubles facing Boeing and its new CEO Kelly Ortberg, who earlier Wednesday expressed measured optimism the latest contract would be ratified.”We have been feverishly working to find a solution that works for the company and meets our employees’ needs,” said Ortberg in a message to employees accompanying third-quarter results.Boeing reported a whopping $6.2 billion loss due in part to added costs connected to the strike and to problems with its troubled defense and space business.The embattled aviation giant has also been under regulatory scrutiny following safety problems.

Pakistan is hoping to finalize both the delayed privatization of its flag carrier and the outsourcing of Islamabad’s international airport in November, the country’s finance minister said Wednesday.Muhammad Aurangzeb, who took office earlier this year, spoke to AFP at the World Bank’s headquarters in Washington, where he is attending the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. During a previous interview with AFP in April, Aurangzeb had said he hoped the privatization of the government-owned Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) could be completed by June 2024. Speaking Wednesday, the finance minister said the five-month delay was down to two factors: ensuring macroeconomic stability, and doing the proper due diligence of the interested parties. “The reality is, when any foreign investor comes in, or even the local investor, who are going to put in a substantial amount of money, they want to ensure that the foundation is there,” he said, referring to macroeconomic factors. Aurangzeb noted that potential bidders for both PIA and Islamabad airport also required scrutiny, another factor in the delay. “Therefore it’s ultimately the cabinet which approved the extension in the timelines so people can do their due diligence before they make these submissions,” he said. – Brink of default -Aurangzeb said Pakistan had been behind on existing profit and dividend repayments when the current government took office, and had taken steps to remedy that after making progress on macroeconomic stability.The country came to the brink of default last year as the economy shriveled amid political chaos following catastrophic 2022 monsoon floods and decades of mismanagement, as well as a global economic downturn.Inflation peaked at 38 percent, but has since dropped to less than seven percent, after the central bank maintained sky-high interest rates, amid other government tightening measures, including import bans to preserve foreign exchange.Last month, the IMF approved a $7 billion loan, Pakistan’s 24th such payout from the multilateral lender since 1958.Aurangzeb touted progress on the country’s current account deficit and the stabilization of the Pakistani rupee, which has depreciated against the US dollar by about 65 percent since 2020.”In May and June on the back of this macroeconomic stability and building up on our reserves, we paid more than $2 billion to our existing international investors,” he said. Pakistan’s gross public debt currently stands at 69 percent of GDP, according to the IMF, or roughly $258 billion.- ‘Saturation point’ – Alongside privatizing state-owned enterprises (SOEs), Pakistan’s IMF deal also rests on increasing its tax base, and reforming of the country’s power sector. Aurangzeb told AFP there was a common theme between all three major issues. “Tax, power, SOE: There’s leakage, there’s theft, there’s corruption, right?” he said. “And we have to deal with all of that.”But he dismissed media reports that the government was not serious about broadening its tax base, saying that the tax take had risen by 29 percent in the last fiscal year, which overlapped with a prior caretaker government, and was targeted to rise by a further 40 percent in the current fiscal year.In a nation of more than 240 million people where most jobs are in the informal sector, only 5.2 million filed income tax returns in 2022.”People who are not paying up, they need to start paying for the simple reason that we have reached a saturation point of the people who are paying,” he said. “The salaried class, the manufacturing industry, reached a saturation point. And this cannot go forward,” he added. The government was also committed to doing a better job of taxing certain sectors of the economy, he said, naming real estate, retail, retail distributors, and agriculture.

European and US stock markets moved lower Wednesday as investors focused on company earnings, bond yields and the outlook for the US and Chinese economies.The dollar rose against major rival currencies while oil prices retreated.”Rising Treasury yields continue to be a major topic of conversation mainly because the market isn’t entirely clear about why they are going up like they are,” said market analyst Patrick O’Hare at Briefing.com.The yield on 10-year US government bonds has risen to 4.24 percent from 3.73 percent one month ago.”A more market-friendly explanation suggests they are a byproduct of an improved growth outlook that bodes well for earnings,” said O’Hare.”A less market-friendly explanation is that rising Treasury yields reflect burgeoning concerns about the budget deficit and inflation heating up again,” he added.”The economic reports are such that people are losing faith in the idea that we’re going to get aggressive rate cuts,” said Steve Sosnick of Interactive Brokers.With the US economy in rude health, bets on another bumper cut to interest rates at the Federal Reserve’s next meeting have dwindled, supporting the dollar.”Another key factor has been the Trump Trade,” said Daniela Sabin Hathorn, senior market analyst at Capital.com.- Trump Trade -The Trump Trade describes investors acting in expectation of the economic and political policies of a potential second Donald Trump administration in the United States.”Betting odds now show a 60-38 advantage for Donald Trump and markets are clearly agreeing with this with yields and the dollar pushing higher as traders expect a rise in public spending and inflation if he is elected,” said Sabin Hathorn.Analysts argue that a Trump win could see a renewed rise in inflation as the former president favors tax cuts.Investors were also keeping tabs on corporate earnings reports.Shares in Boeing dropped 1.8 percent after the aerospace giant reported a major $6.2 billion quarterly loss.A six-week labor strike has weighed on its commercial plane division, while costly problems bogged down its defense and space business.About 33,000 IAM workers in the US Pacific Northwest walked off the job on September 13. The union is slated to vote on a new contract that could end the stoppage later Wednesday.Electric vehicle company Tesla reported higher profits after the closing bell, sending its shares 8.1 percent up in after-hours trading.Away from company results, shares in Tokyo Metro rocketed 45 percent in Japan’s biggest initial public offering for six years.Shares in McDonald’s, meanwhile, sank more than five percent as investors reacted to news that one person died and dozens became sick following a severe E. coli outbreak linked to its Quarter Pounder hamburgers. Gold struck yet another record high with the precious metal profiting from its haven status as markets struggle to nail down a winner in the upcoming US presidential election and fears of an escalating crisis in the Middle East. Crude futures slid more than one percent having shot higher Tuesday on an indicator pointing to increased demand in China, which is taking measures to stimulate its flagging economy.- Key figures around 2030 GMT -New York – Dow: DOWN 1.0 percent at 42,514.95 points (close)New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.9 percent at 5,797.42 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 1.6 percent at 18,276.65 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.6 percent at 8,258.64 (close) Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 0.5 percent at 7,497.48 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.2 percent at 19,377.62 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.8 percent at 38,104.86 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 1.3 percent at 20,760.15 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 3,302.80 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0787 from $1.0800 on TuesdayPound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2929 from $1.2977Dollar/yen: UP at 152.65 yen from 151.02 yenEuro/pound: UP at 83.41 pence from 83.14 pence West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.9 percent at $70.78 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.4 percent at $74.99 per barrelburs-rl/bys/bjt