U.S. and European stocks advanced on Wednesday following a wave of upbeat company earnings reports. Investor confidence consequently rose, subduing previous concerns driven by the potential return of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes and the economic recession that may follow.
In Europe, the pan-European Stoxx 600 edged higher by 0.1%, putting the index on track to record its third consecutive daily rise. The index was largely boosted by auto stocks, which rose by 1.5%.
Renault SA rose after increasing its full-year earnings guidance due to strong sales for its new models. Swedish retailer Hennes & Mauritz AB also climbed after reporting a smaller-than-expected decline in earnings.
Nasdaq futures gained 0.2% early Wednesday. The tech-heavy index was led by chipmaker Micron Technology Inc., which advanced by more than 3% in pre-market trading after delivering an upbeat sales forecast.
S&P 500 futures rose incrementally by 0.1%, while those on the Dow Jones Industrial Average remained little changed. Outside of the U.S. and Europe, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined 0.3% while the MSCI Emerging Markets Index fell by 0.5%.