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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

China stocks jump, other world markets await Fed minutes

LONDON – Pent-up investor demand fueled a jump in Shanghai stocks after Chinese markets reopened Thursday following an extended holiday but other world bourses were lackluster ahead of the release of minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting.

KEEPING SCORE: In Europe, France’s CAC 40 was up 0.1 percent to 4,672 while Germany’s DAX added 0.2 percent to 9,993. Britain’s FTSE 100 was 0.5 percent higher at 6,359. U.S. shares were poised to open lower with Dow futures and the broader S&P 500 futures down 0.3 percent.

CENTRAL BANKS: The Bank of England decided to keep its main interest rate at the record low of 0.5 percent, with only one member of the nine-strong policymaking panel voting for an increase. Most economists think the Bank of England will wait for the Fed before deciding to raise rates. The Fed is widely expected to increase rates for the first time in more than nine years at its meeting in December. More insights into the Fed’s thinking may emerge later when minutes to its September meeting are published. That’s when the U.S. central bank refrained from rising interest rates from ultra-low levels, citing global market turmoil and low inflation. The report will provide more detail on the thinking behind the Fed’s decision as well as possible clues on timing of the rate hike, which many economists now expect to come next year.

MARKET TALK: “Traders are wondering how close a call it was to keep interest rates unchanged in September,” said David Madden, market analyst at IG. “The announcement will be an opportunity to find out what other members of the Fed are thinking, and it is feared they are more hawkish than the more vocal members of the U.S. central bank.”

ASIA’S DAY: The Shanghai Composite Index in mainland China soared 3 percent to 3,143.36 as trading resumed after a weeklong holiday. Other regional benchmarks struggled following several days of gains. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 Index slipped 1 percent to 18,141.17. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.7 percent to 2,019.53. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.7 percent to 22,354.91. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.2 percent to 5,210.40.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude rose 37 cents to $48.18 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent Crude, which is used to price international oils, climbed 36 cents to $51.69 a barrel in London.

CURRENCIES: The euro rose 0.4 percent to $1.1284 while the dollar fell 0.1 percent to 119.84 yen.