Sawt Falasteen - Stocks push higher ahead of expected US rate cut

Sentiment was also boosted by news that the United States and China have reached a framework for a deal over their TikTok dispute, which the US side said will be finalised by President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Friday.

Equities have enjoyed a strong run-up over recent weeks as a string of data on jobs and inflation are seen as having provided the US central bank with enough leeway to resume its rate reductions.

Wednesday's policy decision follows figures showing the labour market continuing to soften, while prices have not spiked as much as feared in the wake of Trump's tariff war.

The Fed is expected to lower borrowing costs by 25 basis points, although some observers predict it could go to 50 points.

The dollar slid against its major rivals.

City Index and FOREX.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada said investors will also be listening for signals justifying future cuts such as phrases like inflation being "well anchored" or the labour market "cooling more than expected".

"That sort of language would be music to the ears of dollar bears, and it wouldn't take much to send the greenback tumbling," he said.

The central banks of Canada, Britain and Japan are also due to meet this week.

Prospects for defusing trade tensions between the world's top two economies improved as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that a "framework" for a deal to settle their dispute over TikTok had been reached with China.

He was speaking after a second day of talks with Chinese officials in Madrid that include discussions on the US-China trade dispute.

Trump said the talks were going "VERY WELL" in a Truth Social post, adding that he will speak to Xi on Friday.

Trade tensions between Beijing and Washington escalated sharply earlier this year, with tit-for-tat tariffs reaching triple digits and snarling supply chains.

Both governments later agreed to lower their punitive tariffs, with the United States imposing 30 percent duties on imports of Chinese goods and China hitting US products with a 10 percent levy, but the temporary truce expires in November.

"This trade news is sounding like good news," said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare, although he noted China had announced semiconductors probes against the United States.

Wall Street's main indices opened higher, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both setting new all-time highs.

Paris and Frankfurt stock markets advanced in afternoon trading, while London dipped.

Shares in Nvidia shed 1.3 percent after China said an investigation found US chip giant Nvidia had run afoul of the country's antitrust rules, and vowed an additional probe.

Asia fluctuated, with Shanghai edging down after data showed further weakness in China's economy, with growth in retail sales and industrial production much slower than forecast.

- Key figures at around 1530 GMT -

New York - Dow: UP 0.2 percent at 45,911.68 points

New York - S&P 500: UP 0.3 percent at 6,606.59

New York - Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 22,243.20

London - FTSE 100: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 9,276.49

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.9 percent at 7,897.04

Frankfurt - DAX: UP less than 0.1 percent at 23,712.45

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: Closed for a holiday

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.2 percent at 26,446.56 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.3 percent at 3,860.50 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1762 from $1.1731 on Friday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3604 from $1.3560

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 147.28 yen from 147.67 yen

Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.45 pence from 86.52 pence

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.9 percent at $63.22 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.6 percent at $67.42 per barrel

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