Global stocks have mixed performance after Wall Street gains

BEIJING - Global stock markets were mixed Wednesday after Wall Street gained and investors were reassured by trade-friendly Hillary Clinton’s performance in a U.S. presidential debate against Donald Trump.

In early trading, Germany’s DAX rose 1.4 percent to 10,502.21 and France’s CAC-40 added 1.3 percent to 4,457.50. London’s FTSE 100 gained 0.9 percent to 6,873.44. On Tuesday, the DAX lost 0.3 percent and the CAC-40 and FTSE 100 both declined 0.2 percent.

Wall Street looked set to for a quiet open: Both Dow and S&P 500 futures were nearly unchanged. On Tuesday, the Dow added 0.7 percent, the S&P advanced 0.6 percent and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.9 percent.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index fell 1.3 percent to 16,456.40 and the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.3 percent to 2,987.86. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was unchanged at 23,560.61. Seoul’s Kospi added 0.9 percent to 2,017.94 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 advanced 0.1 percent to 5,492.40. Benchmarks in New Zealand and the Philippines advanced while Singapore and Indonesia declined.

Investors sold gold and other assets they had bought as hedges against a possible victory by Trump, who has called for controls on trade and immigration. Markets also have been unnerved by Trump’s tax and economic plans. They were reassured by what some commentators saw as his poor showing in a televised debate with Clinton, who is seen as more favorable to trade and continuity in U.S. economic policy.

“The strong performance by Hillary Clinton against Donald Trump in the first presidential debate had a major impact on markets as some of the Trump-related hedges saw a pullback,” said Angus Nicholson of IG Markets in a report. “A number of safe haven assets had been bid up during the Trump poll surge as investors worried about what Trump would mean for the global economy, and particularly the global security risks he poses. Gold saw its biggest one-day decline in more than a month losing 0.8 percent as Trump’s probability of becoming president was seemingly diminished after his poor showing in the debate.”

U.S. stocks rebounded after a Conference Board survey showed consumer confidence is at a nine-year high, a sign Americans will keep spending in the months to come. Technology and consumer stocks made the largest gains. Technology companies jumped, and solid results from cruise line operator Carnival sent travel-related companies higher. Energy companies slumped with oil prices as hopes for an international cut in fuel production faded. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 133.47 points, or 0.7 percent, to 18,228.30. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index picked up 13.83 points, or 0.6 percent, to 2,159.93. The Nasdaq composite gained 48.22 points, or 0.9 percent, to 5,305.71.

Benchmark U.S. crude added 22 cents to $44.90 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract plunged $1.26 on Tuesday to close at $44.67. Brent crude, used to price international oils, added 24 cents to $46.76 in London. The contract dropped $1.41 the previous session to close at $46.52.

The dollar gained to 100.72 yen from Tuesday’s 100.29 yen. The euro was unchanged at $1.12.