In European Equity Markets the pan-European Stoxx 600 closed down by 0.5 percent with most sectors trading in negative territory. Telecoms was the worst-performing sector, falling throughout the day’s trade to finish 1.9 percent lower. In particular, Swedish mobile operator Tele2 was down over 7.5 percent as some investors doubted the company would see near-term profits after buying cable group Com Hem. Altice finished the day’s trade over 7.2 percent to the downside as investors are concerned about the telecoms market in Europe. By contrast, banking stocks rallied throughout the day, ending trading up over 2 percent. This was due to several rating upgrades in the banking sector. Metro Bank performed well, climbing earlier in the day and steadying at over 4.3 percent in afternoon trade. Commerzbank topped the sector, up 5.2 percent.

In Currency Markets the U.S. dollar fell against a basket of major currencies on Wednesday after a report that China was ready to slow or halt its U.S. treasury purchases, with the greenback on track to post its biggest single-day decline against the Japanese yen in seven weeks. The dollar was down 1.1 percent at 111.45 yen, after earlier falling to 111.29 yen, its weakest since late November. Officials reviewing China’s foreign-exchange holdings have recommended slowing or halting purchases of U.S. government bonds, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Against a basket of currencies, the dollar was down 0.4 percent. Sterling was slightly weaker against the greenback as investors locked in profits after its recent rally, though some decent economic data kept losses in check.

In Commodities Markets crude oil prices rose but backed away from multi-year highs on Wednesday after U.S. government data showed an increase in fuel inventories and a falloff in refining activity. U.S. crude inventories fell 4.9 million barrels last week, more than the 3.9-million decline forecast, but bigger-than-expected builds in gasoline and fuel stocks offset that draw-down, the Energy Information Administration reported. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $63.28 a barrel, up 0.5 percent. Earlier in the session, prices hit $63.67, their highest since Dec. 9, 2014. Brent crude futures were at $69.02 a barrel, 0.3 percent above their last close. Brent earlier hit $69.37, its highest since May 2015. A broad, global market rally, including stocks, has also been fueling investment into crude oil futures.

In US Equity Markets major indexes fell on Wednesday, stalling the rally that marked the start of 2018, after a report that China is considering slowing its purchases of U.S. government debt. The S&P 500 was down 0.2 percent, at 2,746.1. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.4 percent, at 7,134.5. Nine of the 11 major S&P sectors were lower, led by a 1.6 percent fall in interest-rate sensitive real estate and 0.8 percent decline in utilities. However, the Dow Jones Transport rose 0.6 percent, boosted by airline stocks. No.2 U.S. homebuilder Lennar Corp fell 0.2 percent after its profit missed estimates due to a delay in the booking of a single large transaction. Nvidia slipped 0.5 percent after the chip-maker said some of its chip-sets have been affected by a memory corruption flaw.

In Bond Markets Germany’s 10-year bond yield hit its highest level since the European Central Bank extended and cut its bond buying scheme in October, as speculation over central bank tightening and new euro zone debt supply rose investor sentiment on Wednesday. The yield on Germany’s 10-year government bond , the benchmark for the bloc, was 1 bps higher at 0.475 percent. The gap with its U.S peer widened to around 212 bps on the day, its highest since April 2017. Italy generated over 26 billion euros of demand for a 20-year bond sale, while Portugal received over 17 billion euros of orders for a 10-year bond syndication. Germany sold just over 4 billion euros of 10-year bonds in an auction, short of its 5 billion euro target. The yield rises are prompting bond investors to ask whether this is the start of a sustained bear market.