In Asian Equity Markets stocks fell on Thursday following a string of hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials, while Chinese stocks outperformed their peers amid persistent bets that the world’s second-largest economy will recover this year. China’s Shanghai Shenzhen CSI 300 and Shanghai Composite indexes rose 0.8 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively, as markets bet on a recovery in activity after the lifting of most anti-COVID restrictions earlier this year. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 0.1 percent on Thursday, while Philippine stocks led losses across Southeast Asia with a 0.6 percent decline.

In Currency Markets the U.S. dollar hovered near the middle of recent ranges versus major peers on Thursday as investors digested comments from a slew of Federal Reserve officials, while crucial consumer inflation data loomed next week. The euro rose 0.18 percent to $1.07325. The Japanese yen was flat at 131.455 per dollar, while sterling was last trading up 0.1 percent at $1.2087. The Australian dollar rose 0.49 percent to $0.6958, while the kiwi was up 0.66 percent at $0.63485.

In US Equity Markets stocks ended down on Wednesday, paring most of the previous session’s strong gains, with tech-focused shares leading the way lower. The Dow fell 0.61 percent, to 33,949.01, the S&P 500 lost 1.11 percent, to 4,117.86 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 1.68 percent, to 11,910.52. All of the major S&P 500 sectors ended lower on the day, with communication services falling 4.1 percent and technology down 1.3 percent. The utilities lost 1.7 percent. Alphabet Inc lost 7.7 percent after its new AI chatbot Bard delivered an incorrect answer in an online advertisement.

In Commodities Markets oil rose for a third straight day on Wednesday as investors felt more comfortable with risk a day after the Federal Reserve chair’s remarks eased concerns about future interest rate hikes. Brent crude settled up 1.7 percent, to $85.09 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude settled up 1.7 percent, to $78.47. Spot gold was up 0.1 percent at $1,875.10 per ounce. Spot silver rose 0.3 percent to $22.25, platinum fell 0.1 percent to $972.00, and palladium lost 0.1 percent to $1,643.37.

In European Equity Markets stocks rose on Wednesday, lifted by positive cues from U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s overnight remarks as well as upbeat earnings from energy and chemicals firms. The pan-European STOXX 600 closed 0.3 percent higher having retreated from nine-month highs hit earlier in the session after other Fed policymakers sounded a more hawkish tone. The energy sector, up 1.7 percent, was the top gainer in Europe, boosted by a 10.6 percent rise in Finnish refiner Neste and a 6.8 percent gain in Norwegian oil and gas producer Equinor after fourth-quarter earnings beats.

In Bond Markets U.S. Treasury yields held near one-month highs on Wednesday as investors adjusted for the likelihood that the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates further than previously expected, following a blockbuster jobs report for January. Benchmark 10-year yields were last at 3.673 percent, after reaching 3.690 percent on Tuesday, the highest since Jan. 6. Two-year yields were last at 4.465 percent, after reaching 4.493 percent on Monday, also the highest since Jan. 6.