European stocks edged higher on Wednesday as markets awaited Nvidia's (NASDAQ:NVDA) earnings report, a key indicator of global demand for chips and a barometer for this year's AI-driven stock rally. The Eurozone’s STOXX 50 rose by 0.30% to close at 4 916, while the pan-European STOXX 600 also gained 0.30% to finish at 521, both reaching their highest levels since mid-July. Tech stocks generally advanced ahead of Nvidia's results, with fellow chipmaker ASML (AS:ASML) rising by 0.70%.
Wall Street fell on Wednesday as investors reacted to Nvidia's latest earnings. Despite Nvidia surpassing revenue and earnings expectations, its shares dropped about 7% in after-hours trading as the company's sales outlook for the upcoming quarter did not meet investor expectations.
In Asia, Hong Kong's shares declined by 1.13% to 17 562 on Wednesday, marking a second consecutive day of losses following a weak session in US markets, where Nvidia's earnings and guidance failed to impress.
In South Africa, the FTSE/JSE All Share Index (ALSI) closed slightly lower on Wednesday amid mixed global markets, as investors awaited the US Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index. The ALSI dropped 0.63% to 84 018 points, with the Top 40 Index down 0.74%. Meanwhile, the rand performed well, trading at R17.71/$ by 18h00.
In commodities, Brent crude declined by 0.62% to $78.71 at 17h55, with concerns over tight supply slightly outweighing worries about demand.
