Global shares mostly lower as oil rises and markets await Trump-Xi talks
[September 24, 2026] By
YURI KAGEYAMA
TOKYO (AP) — Global shares were trading mostly lower Thursday, as
investors tried to digest the recent swings in oil prices and the U.S.
bond market.
France's CAC 40 shed nearly 0.8% to 8,061.10 in early trading, while the
German DAX declined 0.9% to 25,183.19. Britain's FTSE 100 inched down
0.1% to 10,693.15. U.S. shares were set to drift lower with Dow futures
down 0.4% to 51,669.00. S&P 500 futures dropped 0.6% to 7,725.75.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 0.8% to finish at 65,513.99, as some
chipmakers got a boost from the recent interest in artificial
intelligence. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.7% to 8,702.00.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.3% to 24,761.13, while the Shanghai
Composite dipped 1.2% to 3,888.37. Trading was closed in South Korea for
the Chuseok autumn harvest holiday.
In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude rose 2.35% to $94.33 a barrel.
Brent crude, the international standard, gained 2.77% to $106.94 a
barrel.
The price for a barrel of Brent remains much higher than the roughly $72
it cost before the war with Iran began and worries are running high that
the war with Iran will keep oil bottled up in the Middle East for a long
time. Talks are continuing with mediators between U.S. and Iranian
officials, but nothing concrete has come from it yet.
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 Investors are also closely watching
for what might come of the talks between Presidents Donald Trump and
Xi Jinping later in the global day at the White House. A lot is
likely to be discussed, including trade, the war in Iran and AI.
Some analysts are not too optimistic about seeing major agreements.
U.S. inflation has remained so stubbornly high that the Federal
Reserve raised its short-term interest rate last week for the first
time in three years. Fed Gov. Michael Barr said in a speech this
week that further hikes “are likely to be needed” to get inflation
to the Fed’s 2% target.
Although the Bank of Japan recently raised its benchmark interest
rate to stem the slide in the Japanese yen, the move was largely
figured in for weeks. And so the yen hasn't really bounced back. A
weak yen works as a negative for oil-importing Japan when oil prices
are soaring.
In currency trading, the U.S. dollar edged up to 158.37 Japanese yen
from 158.30 yen. The euro was unchanged at $1.1388.
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