The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq opened higher today as investors drew comfort from strong earnings, even as fears about an escalation in the Middle East conflict deepened.
The S&P 500 rose 26 points (0.36%) at the open to stand at 7,162, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 186 points (0.76%) to trade at 24,860 but the Dow Jones fell 99 points (0.2%) to reach 48,763.
Most European shares climbed this afternoon as oil prices retreated from four-year highs, while both the Bank of England and the European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged as anticipated.
London's FTSE index had jumped 148 points (1.4%) to stand at 10,362, while the Paris CAC was flat at 8,072 and the Frankfurt DAX rose 208 points (0.8%) to reach 24,162.
Dublin's ISEQ index was also higher this afternoon, advancing 120 points (0.9%) to trade at 12,403. Shares in Kerry Group rose 3.5% to reach €72.30 after it reported volume growth of 3.1% for the first three months of the year, while Kingspan gained 0.3% to hit €79.45 as it expects to deliver a full year group trading profit in the region of €1.05 billion.
Shares in Cairn Homes were up 0.4% to hit €2.17 after it said it is set to deliver about 6,000 new homes between this year and next, but AIB dipped 0.1% to stand at €9.70 after it said in a trading update that it was retaining its full year guidance.
Earlier in Asian trade, Tokyo's Nikkei index fell 632 points (1%) to finish at 59,285 as a surge in oil prices, driven by reports of possible US military action to break the Iran stalemate, and mixed corporate earnings dampened investor appetite. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index lost 335 points (1.3%) to close at 25,776 after the US Federal Reserve flagged rising inflation concerns.
