Global shares mixed as investors in wait n watch mode

Tokyo: Global shares were mixed on Wednesday after Wall Street indexes finished little changed as investors awaited earnings results from major global companies. The US government will release economic growth data for the fourth quarter on Thursday. Economists expect the economy expanded at an annual pace of less than 1 per cent, down from 1.9 per cent in the third quarter, following a contraction in the first half of 2022. Investors will get more updates on personal spending and income on Friday.

France's CAC 40 fell 0.2 per cent to 7,040.34. Germany's DAX fell 0.2 per cent to 15,064.94. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.1 per cent to 7,762.45. The future for the S&P 500 was down 0.4 per cent and that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 0.3 per cent. On Tuesday, the S&P 500 slipped less than 0.1 per cent and the Dow industrials rose 0.3 per cent. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.3 per cent while the Russell 2000 gave up 0.3 per cent. Australia reported higher than expected inflation figures on Wednesday, setting off expectations for another interest rate hike. Consumer inflation rose 8.4 per cent in December, higher than the forecast of 7.6 per cent. It anchored expectations for another 25 basis-point raise from the Reserve Bank of Australia in February, said Yeap Jun Rong, market analyst at IG . Peter Esho, economist and co-founder at Wealthi, said:"It's not the end of the world, but it is a little worrying that Aussie inflation hasn't yet started to trend lower. We believe it will in the next few months." Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 gained nearly 0.4 per cent to finish at 27,395.01.