Global stock markets showed mixed results on Wednesday, despite concerns about slowing U.S. private sector job growth. The market's reaction was tempered by anticipation of government payroll figures due Friday. The OECD also cut its growth forecast for the United States and the rest of the world.
U.S. private sector employment rose by only 37,000 jobs last month, according to ADP, a significant decrease from the 60,000 jobs in April. This figure was also far below the Briefing.com consensus of 115,000. Wall Street's major indexes closed mixed as investors awaited government payroll figures due Friday.
In other news, the U.S. doubled tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to 50 percent. EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic expressed regret over the tariff increase, while U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer noted that negotiations were "advancing quickly." The market is also reacting to comments by Trump that US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has been "too late" to cut US interest rates.
Key market figures at around 2025 GMT: Dow down 0.2%, S&P 500 flat, Nasdaq Composite up 0.3%. The FTSE 100 in London was up 0.2%, while the DAX in Frankfurt rose 0.8%. The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo was up 0.8%. The Euro/dollar was up at $1.1417, and Brent North Sea Crude was down 1.2% at $64.86 per barrel.