HONG KONG (AP) — World shares were mixed on Tuesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 index regaining some of its sharp losses from a day earlier.
In early European trading, France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.3% to 7,614.13, and Germany’s DAX added 0.4% to 19,395.93. In London, the FTSE 100 gained 0.3% to 8,261.83. Investors were awaiting key inflation data for Europe due out later Tuesday.
The future contract for the S&P 500 was little changed and that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged 0.1% lower.
A quarterly “tankan” survey by the Bank of Japan showed business confidence among large manufacturers remained steady at 13, indicating an improved outlook for business conditions. A positive number indicates that more companies maintain an optimistic outlook on business conditions than those who feel pessimistic.
The survey is closely monitored for clues about the impact of the Bank of Japan’s interest rate decisions, especially after the central bank ended negative rates in March and raised its short-term rate to 0.25% in July.
Japan also reported that its unemployment rate for August fell to 2.5% from 2.7% in July, in line with market expectations.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rallied 1.9% to close at 38,651.97 as the yen weakened. The dollar was trading at 143.80 yen, up from 143.62 yen.
On Monday, the Nikkei tumbled nearly 5% as markets reacted to the selection of Shigeru Ishiba to be Japan's next prime minister. Ishiba took office Tuesday following the resignation of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
Ishiba, an expert on defense and on domestic economic issues, was seen by investors as a less favorable choice than some of his rivals in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, partly because he has voiced support for raising interest rates. That caused the Japanese yen to briefly jump in value against the dollar, which would hurt profits of large export manufacturers.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.7% to 8,208.90 after the data showed that retail sales in August rose 3.1% from the same period last year, which is above expectation.
Markets in China and South Korea were shut for holidays. Mainland Chinese markets, which had their best day since 2008 on Monday, will remain closed until Oct. 7 for the National Day break.
On Monday, the S&P 500 climbed 0.4% to reached an all-time high at 5,762.48 and clinched its fifth straight winning month and fourth straight winning quarter. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added less than 0.1% to 42,330.15. The Nasdaq composite rose 0.4% to 18,189.17.
Wall Street has catapulted to records on hopes the slowing U.S. economy can keep growing while the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates to offer it more juice. A big test will arrive Friday, when the U.S. government offers its latest monthly update on the job market.
In the bond market, U.S. Treasury yields rose after investors took comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell as a hint that coming cuts to interest rates may be more traditional sized.
The Fed began its rate cuts with a larger-than-usual reduction of half a percentage point, and many traders expect the next meeting in November could yield a similar sized reduction. Fed policy makers already had indicated they were planning two more cuts this year of the traditional size of a quarter of a percentage point.
But Powell said again on Monday that rate cuts are not something the Fed needs to work quickly on. After his comments, traders were betting on just a 35% probability the Fed will cut rates by another half a percentage point in November. That’s down from a 53% chance seen the day before, according to data from CME Group.
In other dealings Tuesday, benchmark U.S. crude oil lost 69 cents to $67.48 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, gave up 66 cents at $71.04 per barrel.
The euro was trading at $1.1109, down from $1.1138.
FILE - The New York Stock Exchange is shown on Sept. 18, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)
FILE - People walk in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)
FILE - The Tokyo Stock Exchange building is seen Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)
BRUSSELS (AP) — One of NATO’s longest serving top officials, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, stepped down on Tuesday, handing over the reins to former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as the military alliance confronts some of the biggest challenges in its history.
The two men, who first sat together at NATO's table 14 years ago as the leaders of Norway and the Netherlands, greeted each other warmly outside the alliance's Brussels headquarters, before laying a wreath to fallen military personnel, surrounded by the flags of the 32 member countries.
“Mark has the perfect background to become a great secretary general," a visibly emotional Stoltenberg said as he ended a decade in office.
"He has served as prime minister for 14 years and led four different coalition governments, so therefore he knows how to make compromises, create consensus, and these are skills which are very much valued here at NATO,” Stoltenberg said.
Rutte said that he "cannot wait to get to work.”
After hundreds of NATO staffers applauded the two men as they moved inside to the great hall where North Atlantic Council meetings are held at the level of ambassadors, ministers or leaders, Stoltenberg helped his successor to get started by presenting him with a Viking gavel to use when chairing meetings.
Rutte said his priorities would be NATO's support for Ukraine, with the war now in its third year, increasing defense spending and strengthening partnerships that the alliance has established with other countries around the world, notably in Asia and the Middle East.
Rutte also underlined the importance of keeping the trans-Atlantic bond between the United States, Canada and Europe strong, and expressed confidence that he can work well with whoever is elected to the White House.
Surveys suggest the U.S. election in November will be a close race. It could see the return of Donald Trump, whose bluster during his last term of office about low defense spending among European allies and Canada undermined trust of NATO member countries.
It became an existential challenge, as smaller members feared that the U.S. under Trump would renege on NATO’s security pledge that all countries must to come to the rescue of any ally in trouble, the foundation stone the alliance is built on.
But Rutte said: “I know both candidates very well.” He praised Trump for pushing NATO allies to spend more and for toughening their approach toward China. He also hailed the “fantastic record” of Vice President Kamala Harris and described her as “a highly respected leader.”
“I will be able to work with both. Whatever is the outcome of the election," Rutte said.
Stoltenberg, NATO’s 13th secretary-general, took over in 2014, the year that “little green men” from Russia infiltrated Ukraine. Moscow annexed the Crimean Peninsula, sparking a defense spending buildup at the world’s biggest security alliance that gathered pace over his term.
His tenure was surpassed only by Dutch diplomat Joseph Luns, who spent 12 years in charge of NATO.
NATO secretaries-general run the HQ, drive the alliance's working agenda and speak on behalf of the 32-nation organization with one unifying voice. Continuity is usually the key word when they take up office.
Rutte becomes NATO’s top civilian official as Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine approaches the 1,000-day mark.
“There can be no lasting security in Europe without a strong, independent Ukraine,” he said in his first speech on taking office, and he affirmed a commitment made by the organization's leaders in 2008 that “Ukraine’s rightful place is in NATO.”
Russian forces are making advances in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine’s army has a shaky hold on part of the Kursk region in Russia, which has provided a temporary morale boost, but as casualties mount it remains outmanned and outgunned.
Rutte will have to find new ways to encourage support for Ukraine among the allies, whose ranks have swelled to 32 countries since the invasion as Finland and Sweden joined to seek protection from Russia under NATO's security umbrella.
Trump has been critical of U.S. aid to Ukraine, and he suggested last week that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy should have made concessions to Russian leader Vladimir Putin before he launched his invasion in 2022.
Ukraine's NATO membership remains a distant prospect. Several member countries, led by the U.S. and Germany, believe that Ukraine should not join the alliance while it's fighting a war.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg makes statements during a transition ceremony at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Harry Nakos)
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, right, with incoming NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte arrives for a transition ceremony at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Harry Nakos)
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, right, and the incoming NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stand during a wreath laying ceremony at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Harry Nakos)
The incoming NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte lays a wreath during a transition ceremony at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Harry Nakos)
The incoming NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, left, and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stand during a wreath laying ceremony at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Harry Nakos)
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, right, and the incoming NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte arrive for a transition ceremony at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Harry Nakos)
FILE - NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, left, and then-Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte shake hands for the cameras prior to a meeting in The Hague, Netherlands, Tuesday, June 27, 2023. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, File)
