Markets mixed and oil gains as the world awaits the US CPI report
Photo: APEuropean and Asian shares traded mixed on Wednesday, August 12, as investors awaited the US July inflation report, while oil gained about 1% on doubts over when Gulf crude will flow freely again.
The session
The S&P 500 future rose 0.2% and the Dow Jones future was nearly unchanged. In Europe, Germany’s DAX gained 0.3% while Paris’ CAC 40 fell 0.2%. In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei rose 0.8% and South Korea’s Kospi jumped 3.7% on renewed buying of chipmakers, with Samsung Electronics up and SK Hynix gaining 5.5%.
The oil factor
Brent crude rose 1%, to US$89.79 a barrel, and the US benchmark gained 1%, to US$84.07. Persistent uncertainty over when Gulf crude will flow again, after the Strait of Hormuz was closed by the war with Iran, keeps prices under upward pressure.
Why it matters
The release of the July Consumer Price Index conditions the Federal Reserve’s next move. For the Dominican economy, crude is a direct thermometer of fuel costs: if Gulf tensions persist, the effect will reach gas stations and the consumer basket in the coming weeks.
The key figure
US$89.79. Brent’s price at the start of the session, about 1% above the previous close and again at the highest levels since the Gulf conflict escalated.
