Stocks diverge on earnings, as oil steadies

Global stock markets diverged Thursday as traders tracked major earnings and central bank updates, while oil prices steadied after recent volatility caused by the Middle East war.

The US Federal Reserve held interest rates steady Wednesday, weighing on the dollar, though three policymakers called for a hike to combat surging inflation.

The Bank of England is set to keeps it benchmark rate unchanged Thursday.

Major central banks are updating on their monetary policy against a backdrop "of rising volatility, especially for US and Asian tech-heavy indices", noted Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB trading group.

South Korean stocks extended a painful retreat Thursday as a promising start gave way to more blood-letting in the tech field, while the rest of Asia was mixed.

South Korean technology giant Samsung Electronics posted a 19-fold jump in second-quarter operating profit from a year earlier, buoyed by frenzied demand for memory chips used in AI data centres.

However, its share price ended lower.

Wall Street finished sharply down Wednesday, while in after-hours trading shares in Meta slid in the wake of Facebook's parent posting profits that fell short of analyst expectations.

The cost of staying in the race to deploy artificial intelligence -- along with hefty legal and severance charges -- hurt its bottom line.

Some of the biggest share-price movements Thursday came among companies outside the tech sphere.

Adidas slumped 17 percent in Frankfurt after the German sportswear maker missed profit expectations, weighed down by the costs of World Cup marketing.

In Paris, Schneider Electric surged more than seven percent after the company helping to power AI data centres upgraded full-year targets after bumper first-half profits and revenue.

Elsewhere, Stellantis slid five percent as a return to profit for the Fiat and Jeep maker failed to impress investors.

The London stock market, not far off reaching a record 11,000 points thanks to an absence of technology firms, was led by Rolls-Royce nearing midday.

The maker of engines jumped more than five percent after lifting its full-year profits guidance.

Shell gained one percent after the British energy giant posted soaring profits with the Mideast war sending oil prices rocketing in the second quarter compared with one year earlier.

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.2 percent at 10,932.39 points

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.8 percent at 8,473.58

Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.1 percent at 25,433.93

Seoul - Kospi: DOWN 1.2 percent at 5,593.56 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.7 percent at 61,867.43 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.2 percent at 25,858.88 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.6 percent at 3,804.69 (close)

New York - DOW: DOWN 2.2 percent at 51,594.14 (close)

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.5 percent at $91.16 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.1 percent at $84.58 per barrel

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1462 from $1.1457 on Wednesday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3376 from $1.3350

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 163.30 yen from 163.47 yen

Euro/pound: DOWN at 85.69 pence at 85.78 pence

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