Sawt Falasteen - Stock markets push higher but Ukraine tensions urge caution

Quarterly earnings from the AI chip giant Nvidia also gave investors reason for pause, after failing to match the sky-high expectations of many analysts that could underpin further tech stock gains.

But bitcoin resumed its march higher at around $97,000 on expectations that Donald Trump, spurred by cryptocurrency cheerleader Elon Musk, will bring it further into everyday use upon re-entering the White House in January.

"Will Americans be able to use crypto to pay their taxes in future? There is a bigger possibility of this happening now than before the election," said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.

Stocks in Asia had opened lower in the wake of Wall Street weakness Wednesday ahead of the Nvidia report, which showed a $19 billion quarterly profit on red-hot demand for its artificial intelligence chips.

While above expectations, it was not the blockbuster profit many investors had hoped for, and weighed on European markets for much of the session.

But after a hesitant opening US stocks bounced higher, pulling European indices into positive territory at their close.

Analysts cautioned however that with Washington saying Russia had used an "experimental" midrange ballistic missile against Ukraine, caution will remain the watchword.

That caution helped push up the dollar, long seen as a haven in times of uncertainty.

Oil prices also rose "as geopolitical tensions outweighed concerns over rising US crude supplies", said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.

"Geopolitical fears have also sent gold higher in recent sessions as investors look for some safety as Russia-Ukraine tensions escalate," he added.

Further deterioration of the conflict ahead of Trump's return to the presidency would add to unease about how his tax and tariff plans could play out on global business in the coming months.

In Asia, shares in Indian conglomerate Adani Group tanked after US prosecutors charged its owner Gautam Adani with handing out more than $250 million in bribes for key contracts.

Flagship operation Adani Enterprises dived almost 20 percent, while several of its subsidiaries -- from coal to media businesses -- lost 10 to 20 percent.

- Key figures around 1655 GMT -

New York - Dow: UP 0.8 percent at 43,775.11 points

New York - S&P 500: UP 0.2 percent at 5,929.45

New York - Nasdaq: DOWN 0.5 percent at 18,881.36

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.8 percent at 8,149.27 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.2 percent at 7,213.32 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.7 percent at 19,146.17 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.9 percent at 38,026.17 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.5 percent at 19,601.11 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 3,370.40 (close)

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0482 from $1.0545 on Wednesday

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2593 from $1.2652

Dollar/yen: UP at 154.55 yen from 155.45 yen

Euro/pound: DOWN at 83.23 pence from 83.33 pence

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 1.5 percent at $73.89 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.6 percent at $69.88 per barrel

Z.AlNajjar--SF-PST