In European Equity Markets the pan-European Stoxx 600 was down 0.17% by the close of trade. Financial services led gains while autos and bank stocks slid lower. Italian banks led the decline following reports that Luigi di Maio, leader of the Five Star Movement (M5S) and deputy prime minister, has resigned. Housebuilder Berkeley Group saw its shares climb almost 5% after announcing that it would increase its returns to shareholders by around £455 million ($593.3 million) to investors over the next two years.

In Currency Markets Britain’s pound rose 0.67% against the dollar as investors debated whether or not the Bank of England would cut interest rates when it meets next week. The Canadian dollar was down 0.4% against the greenback after the Bank of Canada maintained its key overnight interest rate at 1.75% as expected on Wednesday, but opened the door to a possible cut should a slowdown in growth drag on. The U.S. dollar was 0.04% higher against the Japanese currency, and up 0.08% against the franc.

In Commodities Markets oil prices fell on Wednesday as a market surplus forecast by the International Energy Agency (IEA) outweighed concern over disruptions to Libya’s crude output. Brent crude was down 48 cents, or 0.7%, at $64.11 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate fell 57 cents, or 1%, to $57.81. The head of the IEA, Fatih Birol, said he expects the market to be in surplus by 1 million barrels per day (bpd) in the first half of this year.

In US Equity Markets the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq scaled new highs on Wednesday, as an upbeat forecast from IBM added to optimism over earnings, while China’s efforts to contain a virus outbreak eased worries about a wider financial fallout. The S&P 500 gained 0.36% to 3,332.60 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.54% at 9,421.75. Netflix Inc’s shares gave up gains to trade 3.1% lower after the streaming video pioneer beat estimates for quarterly subscription growth, but warned of a tough first quarter.

In Bond Markets U.S. Treasury yields fell on Wednesday, adding to weakness seen the previous session, after the Bank of Canada held interest rates steady and opened the door for possible easing amid an economic slowdown, rekindling worries about global growth. U.S. two-year, 10-year and 30-year yields hit fresh two-week lows after the BoC headlines. Treasuries typically react little to monetary policy news from its North American neighbor, but have become more sensitive to global factors the last few months.