Markets end mixed

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq ended lower on Tuesday after hitting record highs earlier in the session, with investors digesting a jump in consumer prices in June and earnings from JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs that kicked off the quarterly reporting season. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq reached fresh record highs but quickly fell into negative territory after an auction of 30-year Treasuries showed less demand than some investors expected and pushed yields higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.31% to end at 34,888.79 points, while the S&P 500 lost 0.35% to 4,369.21. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.38% to 14,677.65.

European stocks eased from all-time highs ahead of a key U.S. inflation reading, but British banks kept UK’s FTSE 100 afloat after a central bank move to scrap curbs on dividends. The pan-European STOXX 600 index slipped 0.1% after hitting a record high in early trading. Barclays, HSBC, and Lloyds Banking Group rose between 1.1% and 1.8% after the Bank of England scrapped pandemic-era restrictions on dividends from top lenders. UK’s FTSE 100 rose 0.3%, while other main regional indexes fell.

Maltese markets edged lower with the MSE Equity Total Return Index closing down 0.31 percent at 8,115.153 points. Three stocks traded, with only two registering a change in price. Bank of Valletta Plc posted the only loss with shares down 2.7 percent at €0.90 while Malta Properties Company Plc recording the only gain with shares up 3.7 percent at €0.56. The MSE Malta Government Stocks Total Return Index closes virtually unchanged, creeping up 0.01 percent to 1,103.644 points while the MSE Corporate Bonds Total Return Index added 0.29 percent to 1,120.402 points.

Source: Reuters, Malta Stock Exchange

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